RotG: Dusty, Spirit of Wishes
by MistyLilyValley
Summary: *Sequel to RotG: Windsong, the Spirit of Wind and Music.* Dusty is the twelve year daughter of the legendary Sandman and Windsong. But when a new threat arises, will Dusty and her siblings, Solar Flare and Cloud Whisper, alongside her friends Snow Mist and Aurora Borealis and newcomer, Blaze Summer, be able to protect the beliefs of children everywhere?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One – The Wedding

* * *

I just knew that my mother's wish would come true eventually. Mother was a spirit, like me, before she was called to be a Guardian. Now, she is not just the Spirit of Wind and Music, but she is the actual Guardian of Belief. But, unlike me, she actually started out life as a human being. Her name was Melody, she once told me when I bit younger than I am now, and she lived a life of love with her two children, my brother and sister, who were also human before they were chosen as spirits by the Man in the Moon.

However, even when Mother became a spirit, she suffered while trying to find her true calling, but there was something, or should I say someone, special that helped her along the way. And, that was my dad.

You might know the Sandman. He's my dad, my actual dad. You know him as the Guardian of Dreams, who brings dreams to children all around the world.

When my mom first became a spirit in 1656, it was Sandy, as he's known to all the rest of the Guardians, that helped to start her on the right path. But, it didn't just stop there. Sandy, or Dad as I like to call him, was there by her side whenever he felt like she needed him, and I know Mom never complained, she never did. That was the time when she was separated from her two kids for time. However, next to Sandy, Mom was never really alone, because like my sister, she had her own little helpers called the Lyrical Sprites. Whisper, my mother's leading wisp sprite, is a bit of a handful, but she was there to help keep Mom in check, or should I say, keep Mom on her toes when it comes to getting into mischief. And not soon after that, Mom met the rest of the Guardians – Uncle Bunny, Grandfather North, and Auntie Tooth, or otherwise known as the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus, and the Tooth Fairy.

Eventually, in the following years, Mom also met up with some other spirits known Jack Frost, Narain Hart, and Casey Aqua. I like to call them Uncle Jack, Aunt Narain, and Aunt Casey. Mom met Aunt Casey and Aunt Narain around the same time in 1820, and they had all been close since.

Mom was still a spirit for over near 356 years, but her true calling came when the Moon chose her and three other spirits – Casey Aqua, Jack Frost, and Narain Hart – to join the fight with the Guardians in the roundabout with Pitch, otherwise as the Nightmare King. You could imagine my reaction when I first heard this story.

Pitch had attacked my parents and the Guardians at every turn, and yet, they still didn't give up. And just when all seemed lost, belief made its way back into the cycle of success. With that newfound belief renewed, the Guardians soon regained their strength and let Pitch have it. Although he almost made a final blow against the Guardians, that same renewed belief brought back his own moral fear, my Dad. Pitch had personally attacked my Dad because, like the Sandman, Pitch had the ability to turn dreams into nightmares. And, he also had his own form of dark dreamsand – I think it was called black sand. Anyway, when he had supposedly got ridden of my Dad by turning him into a nightmare, it almost destroyed my Mom. And, it sure didn't help when Pitch attacked her, too. However, he just merely tried to destroy her wings, seeing them as the source of her moon sands, or in Mom's words, moondust. But, that proved insufficient, because Mom got her wings back soon after and that helped her to aid the Guardians in defeating Pitch once and for all.

This was also the point where everyone witnessed my Dad's return, and if I was there, I would have probably laughed out loud just to see the look on Pitch's face as my Dad let him have it. Everyone was happy to see Sandy's return, but no one was more ecstatic than my Mom. You see, my mom and Sandy had a thing for each other long before Mom actually became a Guardian. And, based on my father's images, I assume that he had a thing for her, too. I mean it's true that my mom married and had two kids in her human years, but when she lost her husband, her love for Sandy just intensified to fill her longing heart. Their strong bond and friendship grew ever stronger over the years, even after Mom became a spirit.

So, today serves a monumental step in their relationship, because today is their wedding day …

* * *

"Mom, where is your bouquet? It was right here," my sister, Cloud Whisper, called as she flew in and out of the room with a roll of violet fabric in her arms.

"Did you look down on the dresser, honey? I think I sat it there," my mother replied as she stepped out of Cloud Whisper's twilight room.

"Oh, here it is," my sister cried as she flew back into the room. Looking up at her, she smiled. "Mom, you look beautiful."

"You sure do, Windsong," a pretty and gentle voice said as a green adorned dryad came out to stand next to Cloud Whisper.

By now, you probably know that my mother is Windsong, mother of Cloud Whisper and Solar Flare and soon-to-be bride of the Sandman. Yep, that's her. And, I honestly say that I couldn't have a better family. So, she stood there with a smile as two other dryads, one purple and the other yellow, placed a beautiful pale lavender veil over her twilight blue eyes. It only made them sparkle more as she sighed with a twirl in her new bridal soft lilac lavender gown. Her snow white hair was swirled back into exquisite curls that cascaded down her back. And, on her feet, where thin ivy sandals were often invisible, simple lavender slippers encased her tiny feet.

"Well, thank you for your help, Natura. This was truly a lovely spot to get ready at," my mom said as held out a hand for her daughter. "Oh, Lindsey, Manny sure took good care of you. I'm sorry if I …"

"Mom," Cloud Whisper murmured, placing a hand on her shoulder as she embraced with her other arm. Kissing her on the cheek, she said, "It's ok now. You don't have to worry about that anymore. Everything happened like it meant to, just like today."

"Sandy," Mom murmured as she looked out of one of the windows of Cloud Castle. Cloud Castle was the home of Cloud Whisper and her Nature Dryads, but today it served as a bridal room to ready the bride. However, it also served as a place for getting Windsong away from her Silent Glade, because upon her marriage, she was due for a special surprise.

Cloud Whisper had just gathered some more moonflowers and shrinking violets to add to her mother's flower bouquet, when she heard her mother say, "Oh, that reminds me, do you think we should see how Whisper and the others are doing?"

Before Cloud Whisper could say a thing, Natura gently took Mom by the hand and sat her down before a crystal mirror as she said, "Never mind about that, dear, I'm sure they're fine."

"But, what about the …" My mom started to say before Natura started brushing a bridal comb through Mom's already-made curls.

"All taken care of," came Natura quick but kind reply.

"Lindsey, where's your brother?"

"He's with Sandy, Mom, getting ready, of course."

"Well alright, I just wondered." By now, Mom had caught on that they were hiding something from her, but she didn't push it as she sat on with eyes sparkling up out at the sky.

You couldn't really blame Mom if she had a case of pre-wedding jitters, or however the saying goes, for this was going to be one of the best days of her life.

* * *

As the day withered on into twilight, there was a sudden knock at the door as North peeked his head in to the company.

"Are we ready?"

"Almost," Cloud Whisper said, placing a final periwinkle flower next to Mom's twilight star barrette. "There."

"Alright, then," North said, holding the door open. "We're ready whenever you are, ladies."

So, as Cloud Whisper waved goodbye to her dryads for the night, she took Mom's hand as they fluttered down to the sleigh, where Tooth sat waiting for them in the passenger seat. Also, there was something waiting for them in the seats, waiting to make the speedy but safe ride more comfortable.

Mom laughed as she looked up at North. "Seatbelts, North? When did you install these?"

North shrugged sheepishly with a chuckle as he replied, "Just recently."

"Well, at least Bunny will be happy if you can ever convince him to ride in the sleigh, again."

"Oh, I have no doubt if I have anything to do with it," he said, taking the reins. "Hang on!"

Hefting the sleigh into the sky, he called for Tooth to throw out a snow globe to erect a portal. And as they went into it, they found that the wedding had just started.

* * *

As they rode out into the sky, the orchestra of elves started up playing the Wedding March as North helped first Tooth out of the sleigh and then Windsong. Cloud Whisper was right behind Mom as they came across a sheltered wood. Finding the sheltered wood familiar, Mom looked around at the rest of the surrounding woods as she found that her feet were resting on clouded ground.

"What's all this?" she murmured, seeing Sandy in the distance next to her beloved fountain. "This is …"

"This is your and Sandy's new home, Windsong," North said proudly, gazing up at the moon, who was there to witness the night's event. "This is your new Silent Glade."

"Aw, nestled in the heart in the clouds," Windsong murmured, tears pouring down her eyes. "Thank you all so much."

By then, Sandy had made his way over to his bride as he held out a hand to her with a smile.

Taking his, they both watched as North and Tooth walked up the aisle, where they saw Narain and Bunnymund with their little daughter Aurora between them and finally Jack and Casey who stood proudly on the other side of them.

Cloud Whisper went next as a flurry mist of transparent wings swooshed down with her, dropping lily petals down the misty trail to welcome the new couple.

Solar Flare was next as he stepped out from behind Windsong carrying a pillow in between his hands. However, beneath his feet, his board led him out onto the trail as he stepped off lightly. "No one said I couldn't ride in," he said, smiling up at his Mom, shaking his soaked hair lightly.

So, soon after my brother made it up the aisle holding the rings, that was when my Mother and Father finally made it up the aisle.

As they walked, they exchanged their vows with only a still and quiet gaze into each other eyes. They did that, because all that they had experienced and went through together said it all. Ok, some words were said, but I'm only repeating what I've been told.

So, as they finally stood in front of North and the Moon underneath the arc of the Silent Glade and next to Mom's precious fountain, they received their rings and exchanged them. Moms slipped a silver moondust encrusted ring onto Sandy's hand while Dad slipped a golden dreamdust enchanted ring on her other one. And, then under the light of Manny's stretching moonrays, they kissed.

* * *

Now, I know me not being there is kind of hard to picture, but yeah, I wasn't around at that time, so I'm just basically telling you how it started based on how I've been told. However, it's not that impossible to see the way Mom and Dad look at each other with such dear love. When I see that, I feel as if I was there myself, but I came a year later, almost exactly a year later.

Who am I, you ask? My name is Dusty, and this is my story …

* * *

**Well readers, here is the first chapter of Dusty's story. This starts out the sequel of my Rise of the Guardians fanfic of "Windsong: the Spirit of Wind and Music." I hope you enjoy it, because this story doesn't just one POV. This story is only a part of one big sequel me and my two friends (writergirl142 and arielkatze) are planning for the movie Rise of the Guardians.**

**If you have enjoyed this, please review. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – Hide and Seek

* * *

"Dusty, where are you?"

"Dusty, we're going to find you," my brother called out as he swooped out this way and that on his hover board.

"_No, you're not," _I whispered as I ducked behind some rhododendron bushes. I was playing a game of hide and seek with my brother and sister, and so far I was winning. Solar Flare, my brother, he says that he is the best seeker because of his excellent tracking skills, but to clear that I'm the best hider, next to my sister, of course.

Pulling apart some of the reeds, I watched with one eye for a moment as I saw Cloud Whisper land among the morning lilies. Where she landed was literally inches from where I sat crouched next to the blooms. Giggling, I pulled back, thinking that she had seen me, but after a few quiet moments of silence, I peeked out, again, and saw her bend down to pick up some stray daisies. Lifting an eye to mine, she just simply smiled knowingly as she continued to pick flowers.

Cloud Whisper is my big sister. Ok, my big step-sister, but that doesn't matter to me. She's my big sister, and that's what counts. The same goes with Solar Flare, even though he's also my step-brother. Being Mom's kids, they're just like her in a lot of ways, but they're different, too.

"Hey, Whisp, you find her, yet?" my brother called out as he hovered above us in the air.

I giggled quietly as I hugged my knees. Sliding down against the side of the brush, I ducked even lower, knowing that if I dove into the bush, he would hear me.

"No, Solar, I haven't," I heard my sister say as she wandered slowly around the bushes.

I could feel my brother's eyes follow her every move as she absently stuck flowers into the bushes. I smiled when I felt the last daisy pin against one of my star barrettes.

"You might try over there though, I thought I heard whispering near the roses," she said, evidently pointing a hand away from where I sat within sight.

Raising a knowing eyebrow, he only grinned as she said, "Okay, I trust you, sis." Then, I heard him rush off in another direction.

With a soft giggle, I stuck my head out of the bush, but then something happened. "Ow," I cried, trying to pull my head back.

"What is it, Dusty?" Cloud Whisper said, immediately flying to over where I was.

"I'm stuck. Something's got my hair," I said, trying to get loose.

Putting a gentle hand on my shoulder, she said, "The first thing to do is to stop squirming. Now, stay still and let me see." Pulling back a branch or two, she gently untangled my long silver hair from around a sticky branch. "There, better?"

"Yeah," I said, crawling out of the bush. "Thanks."

"Incoming," a voice came in from out of nowhere as a pair of strong hands picked me and pulled me into the air. Picking me up and laying me against his shoulder, Solar Flare did a flip or two before he faced me. "I told you I'd find you."

"You didn't find me, you stole me away," I said, peeking over my shoulder.

"There's a difference?" he said teasingly with a hovering stop.

"Yes," I said with little girl certainly, "especially when it's not fair play."

"Fair play, what do you mean?" Solar asked with a grin, knowing the answer.

"Hello," Cloud Whisper said, flying up to meet us in the air with her golden crossbow in her hands.

"Oh, hey Linds …" he started to say, seeing that the bow was pointed straight at him teasingly. "You wouldn't."

"I would, don't make me try it," she said playfully as a soft radiating light beam laid erect on the bow.

Holding me securely with one hand, he put up the other. "Ok, what do you want?"

"My little sister," she said simply, aiming the light arrow.

"Well, I'm sorry, she's my prisoner for the next few hours," he said with a kidding laugh.

I only smiled with a giggle as I caught my sister's eye. Watching her wink, I then turned to face Solar as she sent the arrow flying right over his right shoulder.

"Hey," he said, his voice rising up in alarm.

Then, I saw my chance. "I'm no one's prisoner," I cried, tickling him.

My brother laughed so hard that his hold loosened on me. And, right as he was about to dive, Cloud Whisper swooped right up and took me in her arms, flapping high into the midday sky. Like my mother, who has huge crescent silver wings, my sister had a pair of wings of her own. However, hers aren't magically enchanted like Mom's, they're real white feathered wings.

And, hence her name, my sister did look almost like a cloud angel.

"Hey," Solar Flare called up from his airy tumble as he expertly caught his board back beneath his feet and flew back after us.

"Fly faster, Whisp, he's catching up," I told my sister as she poured on the speed.

Hearing me laugh, Cloud Whisper smiled at me as we ducked down past some trees, where Solar Flare swerved past with ease. As we rose back into the air, Cloud Whisper turned me around where my arms were airborne.

Giggling, I stretched out my fingers against the air as misty blue sparkles began to blend from them. Knowing what I was fixing to do, Cloud Whisper let me go as I willingly remained airborne for about a moment.

Then, spreading my arms wide, I dived down into the open air as my hands began to sculpt. With the air rushing my long hair back, I dipped to the side as I grabbed ahold of an invisible wheel as a seat caught my fall. Sitting up, I smiled when I saw that I was in my very own sandy copter.

You see, with my Dad being the Sandman, he's able to make a whole lot of cool things, like a manta ray, a dinosaur, or even a helicopter. But, just recently, I've been starting to manifest my own gifts, and this is one of them. I can make almost anything just by thinking or imagining it into existence. So, just like my parents, I, too, harbor my own sands.

I've asked my parents what it's called, but they always told me that I would know in time. At six years old, I had no idea, but it's proved to be my greatest joy.

"Whoa, nice one, Dusty," I heard my brother call from several meters above my head. Pulling down my sandy goggles, I flew up to meet them in the sky as they jumped into the newly made passenger seats.

"Hang on," I called out, tipping it into a dive.

Faster and faster, the floors of the Silent Wood came up to meet us, and just when I was about to turn it to land, a flurry of hands quickly snatched us all from the seats. Looking up, I met the worried eyes of my mother.

"What did you think you were doing, Dustidell? You could've gotten hurt," Mom said as she lowered me and my brother to the cloudy floor. Cloud Whisper fluttered down next to us when she hastily caught Mom's eye.

"I .. I …" I stammered, watching as my Dad caught my plane with a lasso of dreamsand. In a grand flourish, he whipped it as the plane shimmered out of existence and mingled with his own sands in the air. Walking over to where Mother stood, he too looked at us with a serious look on his face.

"We were playing a game, Mom," Solar said, coming to my rescue.

"A game?" Mother asked, puzzled, as she looked at her husband, who also had a look of bewilderment as a question mark formed above his head.

"Yeah, we were playing hide and seek," Cloud Whisper joined in a little too late.

Mom and Dad both looked at each other with a shared thought and then turned back to us. Looking straight at me, Mom said, "Dustidell, both your father and I know that you want to explore these gifts, but you need to practice them in a safer way until you know how to use them."

"Mom, I wouldn't be so hard on Dusty. She doesn't any better, and how else is she going to practice?" Cloud Whisper said as she rapped a loving arm around my shoulder.

Mom only smiled as she laid a hand on her daughter's other shoulder. "I'm not mad, Lindsey, I'm just concerned. Both you and your brother have excellent control over your abilities," she said, turning back to me, "and I only want the same for you, Dustidell. Having power over sands can be extremely tricky, and I just want you to find the right balance. It can be fun, too, ask your Dad."

With a glance over to him, I watched Dad smile warmly as he dreamed up a mini plane to bring Solar's board back over to him, which he hopped back on gratefully.

"When can I learn?" I asked simply, looking back up into my mother's eyes.

Chuckling, she, too, stole a look at Sandy as he came walking over. "Well, your father is thinking about taking you out tonight to show you what you can do with your abilities and possibly find where you stand on them."

"You mean while he's out giving dreams to the children of the world? Wow," I cried, with a hop and slight hover over to my Dad's arms.

"Mom, can we come, too?" Cloud Whisper asked, taking my hand.

"Yeah, Mom, please," Solar Flare joined in.

Sandy looked with a smile as Mom said, "I don't see why not. We'll all go."

* * *

**Alright, here's chapter two of dusty's story in where she's starting to exhibit her powers. Hopefully chapter 3 will be up soon, meanwhile enjoy. Oh, and please review if you have any questions or if you just want to. :)**

…


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 – Granting Wishes

* * *

So, that's how I'm out on the clouds tonight. Not that I was never allowed, but, never feeling the need to learn, I guess somewhat made me wait. I don't know how to say it to be honest, but I guess I just wanted to be sure I was ready.

Manny was resting on the line of the horizon when we arrived. His moonbeams stretched out into the sunset, illuminating the night sky as it made way for the twilight stars.

I had settled down next to Dad on his dreamsand cloud as I witnessed Mom suddenly fly down into the town, pulling out her windpipes as she did so. My Dad had given them to her on the first night of her being a spirit, and that was before Manny had first spoken to her. My Mom isn't like the Sandman, she can't make dreams like he can, but her moon sands allow her to wake a sleeping child if they are having a nightmare they can't immediately wake up from. Also, like my Dad, she can portray what's on her mind, but she prefers to use her words for that. So, in a way, she can form images with her sands kind of in the way that I can with mine, but Mom's only allows her to help comfort the dreams of a wearied heart. She's told me on a few notes how she can help soothe a child with her sands, but she can't put them to sleep the way Dad can. However, I must say that my mother's true talents lay in her voice.

"_Midnight calling, twilight sky has arisen, it's time to dream, let your hopes come out and sing .."_

My Mom, I'm sure you heard me say, is the Spirit of Music, and through part of it, she found that her center revolved around the very heart of belief. Mom isn't the Guardian of Love like Aunt Narain is, but she proves to have a caring heart especially for all the kids in the world.

"_The music in the stars, whispers your name, let your prayers be heard in the moonlighted sky …"_

"The music in the stars, whispers your name," I hummed along, watching as my Dad started to send out waves of dream sanded dreams. The sands mingled in the air of my mother's song before they vibrated down to touch the windows of any sleeping children, granting them their night's hopes and wishes.

"_Let a wish take wing tonight, with just a little word of hope and faith …"_

"Let a wish take wing tonight," I sang along, hovering near the edge of my Dad's cloud. Looking up at him for a moment, I heard the words of the song form another meaning to my heart.

I guess Dad saw the jest of what I was thinking, because with a smile, he casted a small dreamsand star trail twinkling about my ears and around back to my heart, willing me to listen to the words.

"You want me to listen?" I asked him curiously as I saw a smile twinkle in his eyes in reply.

So, with just a nod of his head, he took my hand up to the dreamsand images that were still flying amidst his head. Touching them, I felt the joy, the hopes, and the love that went in every one. But, I was still unsure of what he wanted me to be on the lookout for.

"_There are some things that go unexplained, but with just a little patience and time, that dream is sure to fly … to fly and take wing … into the midnight dawn. The stars in the sky take names … for they know every hope … that crosses into creation …"_

"The stars … take names?" I wondered aloud, looking up at the stars. I know this sounds weird, but they actually winked at me in reply.

"_They know of every hope … and can hear every voice ... ," _My mom continued, looking up at me.

Looking down into her eyes, I hovered off of Dad's cloud only to hover down on my own as my Mother fluttered up higher to touch the edge of my single cloud.

"_You only have to take the time to listen, and heed their silent call. A wish is truly something special, and it takes one to hear," _Mom softly hummed as she looked up into my eyes. "Your father and I have been wondering about where you and your sands stand out, and that's why Manny asked us to bring you out here to see if you were ready."

"Ready?"

"The stars, go to them and simply listen," Mom said as she joined Sandy on his cloud.

"The stars want me to listen? I don't understand, Mom. What is it that I'm supposed to be listening for?"

"Anything," she said simply with a smile. "Manny was sure when he requested this, you need only listen."

Looking up at the Moon, I was met back with a reassuring feeling of duty as I hovered higher into the night sky. The black aura of the night was dark and lonely without starlight, and my eyes immediately went to the first one as it twinkled out into existence. Just as I stopped to admire it, I heard the soft murmurings of a wish.

"_Starlight, Star bright, first star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight …"_

Now, just as I looked down to see a tiny little girl looking up at the star, I felt as if she were looking at me, too. I'm not sure why, but this was where my heart started to speak to me, telling me to actually grant her wish. But, I didn't know how at first. So, it was by pure instinct that my hands started to sculpt and form. A cloud of dust shimmered below me as my hands released waves of the sparkly sands I knew as my own.

Now, if I were to repeat what I had heard to you, then, like what most people believe, I wouldn't be sure if the wish ever came true. And, that's exactly what I was doing now – I was granting my first wish come true. The wishes I grant are not always my own, but it's that very tool that led me to find what I was to become in the future.

Now, I can't say who or what I am yet, but I can tell you this, you have heard that my name is Dusty, but now I shall tell you my real name – Dustidell Starlight.

* * *

As I watched the shimmery form weave down to touch the heart of the person that it was meant for, I knew my job was done for the night, or so I thought.

Wishes came and went after the first, and I found that I could not grant every one. But, that's for another time to say.

Soon, however, the wishing whispers stilled as the whole town eventually went to sleep. My Dad was still on his cloud distributing dreams to the still corners of the Earth, but it was my Mom and my sister who came forward to finally meet me.

"Dusty, did you really just do all that? That was so beautiful," Cloud Whisper sighed as she laid a tired hand to her face with a beaming smile.

"Dusty, I am so proud of you," My Mom said as she took me in her arms.

"But Mom, I couldn't heed every one like you said. Why did I have to do this?"

"I can't really answer that, but what I can say is that it was meant for you to take under your wing and prosper in it. This is Manny's gift to you," I heard Mom say as I felt another silent whisper knock on my heart.

"I didn't hear every one," I said, looking away.

"I don't think you'll hear every wish, every time, but this is truly what you are called to do."

I couldn't help but smile at that, but what my Mother said next truly made me beam.

"You are truly ready, and this tells me that we should go see a certain someone and tell him the good news."

"Grandfather North?" I asked excitedly.

"Yes, he'll want to know," Mom said gently as we began to fly back home. Looking over my shoulder, I saw Cloud Whisper fluttering close by as I also saw Dad carrying a sleeping Solar Flare over his shoulder as he drove his dream helicopter in another direction.

"When will we go?"

"We'll head out first thing in the morning."

* * *

**Alright, here's Chapter Three of Dusty's story. Ok, by now, you've probably figured out that she's called to grant wishes, hence her name, but for why - Ah, that will have to wait until later. If you haven't already, you might look into writergirl142 side of his story, which deals with a character I am going to mention later in the story. Her character's name is Snow, and, trust me, you will love how the story comes out.**

**So, if you liked this chapter or have any questions about it, please review. :)**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four – The North Pole

* * *

"Solar Flare! Get up, we're going up to see Grandfather North," I remembered screaming in the hole of my brother's dormant volcano.

My brother lived in a volcano, because, according to what he told me, Manny had placed him there because it was the only suitable place for him to live while he was learning his fire powers. However, living here all those years, I think my brother liked the quiet atmosphere it gave him. Also, this was the type of place that assured him that he couldn't do no damage. The volcano itself had never erupted, it was merely the structure that labeled it as a volcano, for the outside it actually looked like one.

"Mom? Can I go in and get him?" I asked innocently.

Mom looked into the hole so cautiously that I had a feeling that she had never seen the inside of an actual volcano before. I hadn't either, but, according to my brother's description of the inside of his home, I have to say that it had me on the edge of my seat to go inside. "I don't know, Dusty."

"Mom, I've been inside this volcano once or twice, it's perfectly fine. I can go in with Dusty," Cloud Whisper said as she fluttered over to the side of my Dad's sandy plane to meet Mom's eyes. "Unless you want to come with us. You'd be able to see where your son lived all these years," she said with a giggle.

With an encouraging nod from Sandy, Windsong took both of her daughter's hands as they led out of the plane. "Alright."

So, we entered the inner catacombs of the supposed magma chamber, and to our surprise, it was exceedingly warm, the perfect temperature to cook eggs on a dashboard. Taking the stony ledge stairs, I'm guessing that they were added about 200 years ago, we ventured down deeper into the volcano until we entered into a vast living space.

"Wow," my echo vibrated along the walls. Looking up, I immediately saw Dad's curious face as he watched us from above. "We're fine, Dad!" I hollered up at him.

I guess Solar heard my holler then, because he came of out of his closed up bedroom about a minute later. Yawning mightily, he mumbled, "Ah, I felt like I slept through half a day."

"It can feel that way when you get in touch with Sandy's dreamdust," Cloud Whisper giggled, holding a hand to her mouth.

Our brother really did look like a sandy mess, for his flaming hair was still shimmering with traces of his sands, and it was obviously making him feel groggy.

Luckily, Mom noticed this. "Solar, do you have a wash bin?"

"Yeah, over there," he said, rubbing his eyes. "I get my own water from the nearby mountain spring."

"That'll do fine. Come along," our Mom said gently as she guided him by his tired shoulders into another room. Soon, peeking out, she said, "Whisp, honey, could you see if you can find me a towel to wash your brother's face?"

"Actually, Mom, I have something better," my sister said as she twitched up a hand. Immediately in her palm, a weather snow cloud formed. "Use this, it'll last only for a moment and it's already filled with water."

"Thank you, dear," Mom said as she took the cloud pad from her daughter's hand.

"How did you do that?" I asked my sister.

Bending down to face me eye to eye, she said with a smile, "I told you before, Dusty, I can do that because I'm the Spirit of the Sky."

"I know that," I said innocently, "but I don't think you told me about you being able to control the weather."

Cloud Whisper thought on this for a minute. "Well, I might have mentioned it, but I'm pretty sure you've seen me form clouds before. They are my true speciality."

"What about your light beam arrows?"

"That too," she said simply. "I also have the ability to bend any shape of light to my will, hence the light beam arrows."

"Wow," I sighed as she giggled. "I can't wait to do stuff like that."

"Well, I don't think your gifts will be quite like mine and Solar's, but whatever you find will be yours to hold entirely," she told me with a hug.

I held on to my sister for a while as we waited for Mom and Solar to come out. I couldn't help but look up to my older sister, because she always seemed to understand what I had on my mind.

"We're ready," I heard my Mother say as she flew up out of the volcano. Turning around, we saw a refreshed Solar Flare stretch away the night's weariness away as he willed his flames to start up, again. He didn't have a lot of success because it looked like there were still streams of cold water running down the sides of his damp brown hair. His hair was always a fiery blonde, but when it was wet, it turned brown because of his firelight going out.

"Oh, Solar, you should probably dry your hair first before you make your hair flame up again," Cloud Whisper said with an already formed cloud in her hand.

"All Mom used was that wet moistened cloud with cold water, that's why I'm having trouble lighting up," he said, looking up directly at his sister with a sibling irritated grin.

Cloud Whisper threw it at his face as she said, "You better hurry, or we'll leave without you. We're going up to the North Pole."

"Really? Alright, tell Mom I'll be right there," Solar said as he went into another room to grab his hoverboard.

"Come on, Dusty," Cloud Whisper said as she picked me up and flew both of us out of the volcano and back up into Sandy's plane.

* * *

I'm not sure what it was like when Mom flew up to the North Pole up on her own that one time, but in Dad's plane, it took less than an hour to reach Grandfather North's workshop. And, I could tell by the voices we heard inside that we weren't the only ones here.

"Sandy! Windsong!" I heard Grandfather North's voice bellow out from the door as he came up over the snow mound. Before my parents could do anything else, North had kissed both of them on the cheeks in such joy that it left them quite speechless with a wry laugh.

Then, Grandfather North's eyes found me and my siblings, but his eyes stopped on me when he saw me hug my violet sweater tighter for warmth. "Oh, Song, don't tell me that this is little Dusty."

"It is, she has grown up hasn't she?"

"Why, the last time I saw you, you were only nay big," he said with a wholly laugh, holding a hand as low as my waist.

I giggled as his baby blue eyes ventured up to my brother and sister. "Ah, Solar Flare and Cloud Whisper, it's wonderful to see you two, again. Controlling those fire levels of yours, Solar? You better quench it before you come in, alright? And, Cloud Whisper, keep an eye on him, huh?" He said with a grin as Solar Flare grinned with amusement.

"Hey, North, who's out there?" I heard an accented voice peek out the door. "Ah, it's Windsong and family!"

"Bunny," another voice laughed as a girl with long red hair stepped out the door, holding the hand of someone who looked about my age. "North, why don't we invite them in? It's freezing out here," she said, smiling at all of us.

"Huh, oh yes, I do believe that we have some things to discuss," Grandfather North said he herded us all through the door.

Inside, we were ushered through this fabulous workshop that was filled with actual yetis and elves. Seeing it all, I came realize that it was the yetis that made and colored the toys, while the elves just did whatever.

"Cool place, huh?" a pretty voice said as she walked up alongside me. "My name is Aurora Borealis, but most people just call me Aurora, for short." Her gray bluish hair waved down past her shoulders as she walked. "What's your name?"

"Dusty," I said, a little shy. "My full name is Dustidell Starlight, but I'm just called Dusty, for short."

Aurora giggled when I repeated her phrase "for short." "You're new around here, aren't you?"

"Yeah, this is my first time here."

Aurora smiled as she offered me one of her hands, or paws. "Well, you'll know all about everything soon enough. They explained everything to me about a year ago back when I was four. I've past five now."

"I'm going to turn five around next spring."

"Well, you're in good company, then," she said, her gaze turning up to look up at my parents. "Hey, I've think I've heard about your parents, the Sandman and Windsong, right? They are the Guardians of Dreams and Belief, I gather."

"Yep, and judging by your dad, I'll say that he's the Easter Bunny," I said, seeing him smile down at us.

"His name is Aster E. Bunnymund, or just Bunny to most people who know him. But, to me, he's simply Dad."

"Me too, I … uh .. I mean with my Dad," I said, innocently.

Giggling, Aurora just said, "Don't worry, I get what you mean. And, don't forget about my mom over there." Tilting her head to the side, I followed her long ears to see that my Mom and her mom were catching up on things. "Her name is Narain Hart, and she's the Guardian of Love."

"Oh yeah, I remember Mom mentioning her. She told me that your Mom, Casey Aqua, and her were close friends."

With a smile, she noticed my brother and sister walking next to us. "Those must be Windsong's twins I heard about, Cloud Whisper and Solar Flare, no doubt."

"Yep, that's them," I said simply, smiling up at them.

"My dad told me that Solar Flare often gave him a hard time," Aurora said with a slight edge, but it was quickly changed into a smile and a giggle.

"He can do that, he gives me a hard time fairly often," I said, earning me a playful shove from him.

"You know I can hear that, Dusty."

"I know," I said with a laugh. "So, what are we here for exactly?"

We neared an elevator as Aurora said, "Well, for starters, they're going to catch us up on everything that makes them a Guardian, and then they are going to ask us what our center is."

"Center?"

"Yeah, center. It wants makes you a Guardian and what you put out into the world."

"But I'm not a Guardian."

"Neither am I, yet. We won't know for sure until Manny tells us. So, in the meantime, this is what we have to learn."

"Oh, wow," I sighed as we assembled into North's elevator and rode on up to what is called his Globe Room.

* * *

**Wow, two chapters in one night. Well, here's chapter four. Enjoy! :D**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five – Reassurance and New Friends

* * *

It had been nearly a year before I first meant Aurora at the North Pole. That was also the first time that my parents brought me up to the Pole with them. I was only four at the time, but I didn't know how I could be called to be a Guardian. Sure, I have the power to grant wishes, but I didn't really know the basis of being a Guardian. The only things I knew were what I heard or saw from my parents.

Aurora helped me to understand most of it, but it was my Mother that cleared me up on the details. She told us, along with Narain, Bunny, and North, that it was almost possible that we could be Guardians, too. I almost had a feeling that it was just because we were spirits, but there was something else bothering me.

Just listening to them talking about what made them a Guardian had my heart murmuring, telling me to listen once again. It was asking me to understand, but somehow I couldn't.

"Are you alright, Dusty?"

Looking up from where I sat alone in the dark, I saw my sister and Aurora walk over with a few cups of hot cocoa in their hands.

Aurora twitched her ears as she sat down next to me and passed me a cup. "Here, better?"

I took a sip with a sigh. "Yeah," I answered. "Don't worry about me, I'm okay."

"You sound like there's something's wrong," Cloud Whisper said, laying a comforting hand atop me. "Do you want to talk about it?"

To tell you the truth, I didn't know what was wrong with me. I guess I was just scared, because I had never thought that I would possibly be a Guardian one day. "I guess all this is just making me feel a little overwhelmed, because I had never thought I would one day be a Guardian," I said, looking up into their eyes.

"I didn't either," came Aurora's sweet reply. "Manny obviously has something planned, but something tells me that it may not be for a while. Just because we're training now doesn't mean we'll just become Guardians overnight. At least, I think so. Our parents and the rest of the Guardians are just seeing what we can do in case we are chosen to one day fight by their side."

"I believe that Aurora is right, Dusty. And, I'm sure Manny wouldn't just pick one of us unless he thought we were ready."

I looked at my sister. "You're ready, aren't you?"

Cloud Whisper's brown eyes widened in shock as she gently shook her head. "Aw, I don't think so, Dusty, at least not yet. Like you, I have yet to find the real reason why I am here."

"You're here because we need you, Whisp. Manny didn't just put you here because of what happened in the fire, did he?"

"I don't believe so, and believe me, I have asked myself that same question fairly often. So, I may be just like you girls. It's true that Manny has kept me and Solar safe all these years, but it wasn't until about 7 years ago that we found Mom. I thought that Manny had supposedly made us spirits because of our family's promise to never break apart, but it's not just that anymore. Literally, we are meant for something greater, and you girls are born to a legacy of greatness just waiting to happen."

"Hey, what are you three over here talking about?" I heard my brother call out as he pulled a chair over next to where Cloud Whisper sat. He had a warm cup of cocoa in his hands that was, undoubtedly, still hot.

Looking up at him, I saw Aurora out of the corner of my eye instinctively back away a little. I could tell she wasn't afraid of him, but something told me that she was just being careful and cautious around him at the same time. You see, as I said before, my brother kind of had an ornery relationship with her Dad in the past. And, there was no doubt that he had mentioned it to her, because I could see that she knew of his abilities fairly well.

"Dusty's just a little nervous about becoming a Guardian," Cloud Whisper spoke up for me as she pulled me into her lap.

"Oh, Dusty, there's nothing to be nervous about. It hasn't even happened yet, so I wouldn't worry about it until it does. For right now, just focus on the lessons that they're teaching you and you'll be all set for when it does happen. You know, I bet you aren't the only who's nervous, am I right, Aurora?" he asked, turning his gentle smile over to her with a grin.

His smile seemed to make her less tense of him, especially when she saw him ruffle my bangs in spite. "Maybe I am, but it only means that we don't know when Manny will choose either one of us. Our parents just want us to be ready if that moment ever came."

"Hey, what are you kids doing over here by yourselves?" I heard Uncle Bunny say as he came bounding over to us with a curious grin.

Aurora smiled as she told her Dad, "We're just talking about the possibility of us being Guardians in the future."

"It sounds hard," I said with a shy grin.

"It can be when you need to find that part of you that makes you a Guardian," Aunt Narain joined in as she sat a loving hand on her daughter's shoulder.

"And that's why you are here to learn," Grandfather North said, summoning us over to where he, Mom, and Dad sat. "First, we shall start with what you know about yourselves."

"Who would like to start?" Grandfather North said as he watched all look at each other in confusion.

"Ah, would you like to start, you two?" He asked, looking directly towards my sister and brother.

"What? Us?" Cloud Whisper said, completely surprised.

"Yes, you two have experience, which is what both Aurora and Dusty are presently working on. Now, I know that you two both have some power over fire and light, and you two are cohesively similar in that. However, while you control the weather and your brother controls fire, you two prove to represent two very different things. Now, if you can that part of you, then you two will be ready to join the Guardians when it comes your time as well."

"Wait-wait-wait," Solar Flare said, raising his hands. "Are you saying that we will be chosen, too?"

"Maybe," Bunnymund said with a grumpy expression, which was clearly meant for Solar alone.

"Wow" was all Solar said as North then turned to us.

"Aurora, your parents tell me that you can control the elements in the Earth, am I correct?"

"Close to that, it's mainly the metals I can control," she said with a confident smile.

Then, facing me, he asked, "And, young Dusty, you have recently discovered that you have a specific calling to grant wishes, right?"

All I could do was nod my head as he sat a soft hand on my shoulder.

"Well, all right then, that's is where we shall you off. You are to practice these skills until you learn what they mean to you, and then you will get a true calling about who you are to become."

* * *

So, for the next few years or so, I continued granting wishes at night or whenever I heard a special prayer on my heart. Not every wish happens at night, I hope you can gather, but any wish that I heard proved important. However, as I learned more about my skills and what I could do with my stardust, I failed to see what it truly meant to me.

Solar Flare and Cloud Whisper proved to be in the same boat as me and Aurora. Only, we weren't the only ones. There was one more person to our little group, and her name was Snow.

Aurora and I first met Snow when I was six years old and she was seven. Like me, Snow was brought up to the North Pole for the first time with her parents in 2020, and she seemed unsure of what to do.

So, when she met me and Aurora, we helped to explain things to her. When we first met her, we saw that we over towered her by at least a few inches, but that was probably just because we were older than her.

She came in with her parents, who proved to be the legendary Jack Frost and Casey Aqua. Jack was tallest of the three of them, dressed in a frosted blue hoodie and brown faded pants. Aunt Casey came up to Uncle Jack's chest with mid-length black hair and a cerulean blue hoodie and blue shorts. Like Snow, both of them were barefoot and each carried a sort of magical staff, one a gemmed blue staff and the other looking like a shepherd's crook staff. Snow's was a combination of the two with her having a crooked staff with a blue gem encrusted in the center of it.

Snow hooked her staff to the back of her red sash that hung over her right shoulder as she stepped over to us to say hello. "Hi, my name is Snowdella Riverland Mist, but I like to be called Snow."

I was the first to take her outstretched hand. "Hi, I'm Dusty, but my full name is Dustidell Starlight."

Then, it was Aurora's turn. "And, I'm Aurora Borealis."

"So, do either of you know why I'm here?"

Aurora chuckled with a smile. "Just turned four, huh? Well you're here because your parents or some of the Guardians are going to show you what goes on around here. This also gives you a chance to meet some of the Guardians if and when you do discover your center."

"My center?"

"Yeah, a center is what we put out into the world of children and what we eventually come to protect as a Guardian," I told her with a smile.

"Exactly," Aurora said with a nod of her head. "Like take North over there, for example, he's the Guardian of Wonder. And Toothiana, or simply Tooth as she known to many, well she's the Guardian of Memories. My Dad, over there, is called E. Aster Bunnymund, and he's the Easter Bunny, or, in other words, the Guardian of Hope. And, my mom, whose name is Narain Hart, well, she's the Guardian of Love."

Feeling a little bit excited, I bent down to look down into her two-toned sapphire and icy blue eyes as I said, "Yeah, and my Dad, the Sandman or just Sandy, he's the Guardian of Dreams. And, my Mom, Windsong, well, she's the Guardian of the Belief."

"Oh," Snow murmured softly, as she lifted a still puzzled dark eyebrow up into her black and snow colored hair.

"So, do you know what your parents protect?"

Snow then had shaken her head "no."

"Well, then, who are your parents?" Aurora asked.

Finally, Snow smiled gratefully as she said, "My parents are Jack Frost and Casey Aqua, the spirits of winter and water, respectively."

"Then, your parents are known as the Guardians of Fun and Faith," I said with a smile.

Snow's grin grew broader as she said, "Then you've already been here and know what's going on."

"I'm seven," Aurora said at the same time as I said, "I'm six."

"Okay, so how do I discover my center?"

"The Guardians are having us practice different qualities that have yet to be protected, so it's actually kind of fun," Aurora said with a wink.

"But it truly takes a while, believe me," I said, gesturing to both me and Aurora with a hand. "Aurora and I, well, we haven't quite discovered ours yet."

"Well, I'm ready for anything," Snow said quite confidently as she ran past Aurora's giggles. I only smiled encouragingly at her, not wanting to make her feel like she couldn't do it. However, she was soon to find out, like the rest of us, that she had a lot to learn.

* * *

**So, here's chapter five. In this chapter, Dusty and Aurora meet Snow, another spirit training to be a Guardian. As you can see by the chapter, Snow is the daughter of Jack Frost and Casey Aqua, and like Dusty and Aurora, she is going to learn what it takes to be a Guardian while she searches for her center. This last part is similar to writergirl142's snow meets dusty and aurora scene, only this is from dusty's entire POV.**

**If you are enjoying this story thus far, please review if you have any suggestions or just want to comment. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6 – Chosen

* * *

My control over granting wishes was becoming more instinct rather than actually doing it out of spite. In fact, you could say that whenever I heard one of those silent whispers, my hands immediately went to work.

However, I could never figure out how or why my center could revolve around something like this. Maybe it was there in my work, but I never noticed. Mom and Dad always told me and my siblings that we would come to know it in time.

Did I know what was coming next? No sir, I did not. All I could sense was that it would all begin with the Northern Lights.

* * *

The night breeze whistled gently past the cloud that Cloud Whisper and I were silently perched on while Solar Flare branched out lazily on his own one. Resting his head on his arms, his eyes drifted shut as Manny rose high into the twilight sky.

"Where's Mom? Isn't she here about now?" my sister asked as she tilted her kind gaze to the nearby town below.

"Usually, yes, but remember, sis, Mom said that she had to visit Grandfather North about something important," I said, watching the lower clouds as I spotted Dad getting settled down on his dreamsand cloud.

"Did she say what it was that was so important?" Solar Flare muttered as he raised his head curiously from his side.

"Well, no," I said slowly, turning my eyes back towards them. "She just said that she had this ominous feeling about something in the air …"

Cloud Whisper's gaze looked down towards Dad as he raised a quick yet cautious hand in a slow greeting.

"Sandy looks nervous, too, if you ask me, don't you think so Dusty?" She asked.

I nodded gently as I caught his eye.

"Hey, what do you think Solar?" Cloud Whisper said, tapping our brother's red boot with her pink one. All we heard was a quiet snore in return, and that just turned on her giggles as she murmured, "asleep again."

"Dad?" I asked, falling down to settle down beside him as I followed his wondering eyes out toward the horizon. "What is it?"

Dad only looked back at me with an uncertain shrug as we watched Manny come into full sight.

"Should we get started?" I asked quietly, hearing the beginning twinkles of the night stars.

"Dusty, is everything alright?" Cloud Whisper asked, flying down to join us.

"Yeah, I think so, there just seems to be this … disturbance in the air."

"What kind of disturbance?"

I just shook my head as I said, "I'm not sure, but it must be important if Mom had to go all the way to the North Pole because of it. I hope she and Grandfather North is okay."

Dad sat a comforting hand on my shoulder as he rapped me in his arms. At twelve years old, I was a bit taller than him, just a bit shorter than Cloud Whisper, but he was still able to hold me when he wanted to.

"I'm sure that they are, Dusty," Cloud Whisper said gently as she pulled out her flute. "Shall I?"

With a nod from Dad, Cloud Whisper flew out into the night, playing a song that couldn't help but make me smile.

"_Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you are …"_

"_Up above the world so high, Like a diamond in the sky," _I joined in as Dad released me to fly after my sister.

"_When the blazing sun is gone, When he nothing shines upon, Then you show your little light, Twinkle, twinkle, all the night. Then the traveler in the dark, Thanks you for your tiny spark …"_

The stars of the night began to sparkle along to our song, but a small glimmer drew my eyes to my chest as my little golden star started to glow.

"… _He could not see the way to go, If you did not twinkle so. In the dark blue sky you keep, And often through my curtains peep, For you never shut your eye, Till the sun is in the sky …"_

In the corner of my vision and the ears of my heart, I heard the quiet beginnings of hurried wishes, but my mind could not conceive them at all. I couldn't do so, because I was perceiving a different face. A hazy vision filled my eyes as I first saw the guarded head of a dark-haired boy with two different eyes, one baby blue and the other a soft brown.

" … _As your bright and tiny spark, Lights the traveler in the dark, Though I know not what you are, Twinkle, twinkle, little star …"_

The image faded along with the song as I felt the warming rush of my Mother's Gail.

"… _Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you … _are …" Cloud Whisper stopped in mid-sentence as she watched as Mom came swooping in on hurried winds.

"Mom," I called while me and my sister rushed over to her.

"Sandy, we've got some kind of trouble over at the Pole …" my Mom paused to say as she caught her breath. As she was doing so, I turned my head as I saw, what I later came to learn as, the Northern Lights.

* * *

When we arrived at the North Pole, the first people I saw were Uncle Bunny and Aunt Narain as they rushed out the door at us.

"Sandy, Windsong, we are so relieved that you could make it," Uncle Bunny said as he immediately rapped his paws around him for warmth against the cold arctic air.

"What's happened?" I heard my Mom say as she immediately flew out of Dad's plane.

"It's the Globe," Aunt Narain replied, laying a hand on Uncle Bunny's arm. "However, we're here because Manny has summoned us all, again."

"What? Pitch?" my Mom asked as she and Dad followed the others inside.

"Pitch? I thought he was defeated," I said, turning to my brother and sister as they got down out of the plane as it slowly evaporated away into nothing.

"We thought so, too," my brother said with a clenched fist that immediately burst into flames. "Cloud and I saw what happened to him."

"We aren't sure it's Pitch this time," I heard a familiar voice say as we all turned to see a thirteen year old girl stand in the doorway. Her brown tipped ears peeked out over her blue greyish hair as she leaned against the door.

"Aurora," I said, running up to give my friend a hug. "What do you mean?"

"North just called my parents in about two hours ago and since then we've been watching the lights on the gigantic Globe go one by one, again and again. We don't know what it is."

"Could it be Pitch? He was dragged away by his Nightmares about 14 years ago, right?" Solar asked as he sat his hoverboard beneath his feet.

"To my understanding, yes, at least that's what my parents, Aunt Windsong, Uncle Sandy, and Aunt Tooth believes."

"The Tooth Fairy is here?" Cloud Whisper asked with an excited smile. No matter how many times my sister has heard about the Tooth Fairy, she always cannot help but get excited whenever she sees her favorite role model, besides Mom, of course.

"Yeah, she's right over …"

"Hi, kids," Auntie Tooth said as she poked her head through the door. "Your parents are waiting for you upstairs, so come on and I'll take you up to them."

"Hi Toothiana," my sister said, flying up to fly alongside her.

"Wait, if everyone else is here, where are Auntie Casey, Uncle Jack, and Snow?" I asked once we got to the top of North's elevator.

"They'll be along shortly, I'm sure," Auntie Tooth said as she flew over to join North at the Globe.

Walking over to tug on Grandfather North's sleeve, I hugged him as I caught sight of the disappearing lights. "What's happening?"

"I don't know, little one. Believe me, I wish I knew," he replied in his deep accent, his baby blue eyes narrowed in guarded determination and deep thought.

"Hey, Dusty, over here," Aurora called from over in the corner as she waved me over to where she stood with Snow.

"Hi Snow," I whispered, inching away with her and Aurora.

"What's happening here?" Snow asked in a confused tone.

I shrugged. "We wish we knew," I replied as Aurora nodded simply.

"Snow," we heard Uncle Jack call for her. Looking from him to us, Snow quietly sighed as she promptly rejoined her parents next to the Globe.

At her return, I saw my parents and Aurora's parents turn to us as well.

"We better get over there," Aurora said, taking my hand.

Standing still under North's rooftop skylight, we watched as Manny came into full view as his moonbeams flooded into the room. Touching a hidden floor compartment in the floor, I gasped as I watched a huge glimmering mystical crystal arose out of the floor.

"Manny's choosing a new guardian?" North asked, his eyes twinkling.

"Why?" I heard Aunt Narain murmur as she looked at her daughter with knowing eyes.

Sure enough, as Manny's moonbeams illuminated the crystals, five images appeared from out of the crystal – Solar Flare, Aurora, Cloud Whisper, Snow, and me.

"Is it Pitch?" Uncle Bunny asked with a furious yet nervous stare at North, who just shrugged.

"It could be," Grandfather North said anxiously, "could be someone else."

"Who could be worse than Pitch?" Auntie Tooth said as she fluttered her wings timidly.

Before anyone could say anyone else, the crystal immediately back beneath the floor, where a mysterious image of a woman with long dark hair and huge dark wings appeared. In the prestige of the moment, it quickly vanished away as Manny guiltily diminished his moonlight.

Indefinitely, a huge silence filled the room as the faces of Grandfather North, Uncle Bunny, Auntie Tooth, and Dad grew strictly white.

"What's wrong?" I heard Uncle Jack say as he and Auntie Casey looked up at Grandfather North expectantly.

"Who is it?" Auntie Casey asked.

Pointing a weary finger at the floor, I heard Uncle Bunny murmur, "That … is definitely worse than Pitch."

"Why Dad?" Aurora asked as her ears drooped to the sides of her hair.

"That is Angel Moon, otherwise known as the Minstress of Deception," Grandfather North said as he turned away.

Aurora, Snow, and I looked even more confused, but it was Auntie Tooth that continued. "She was once a Guardian like the rest of us. She was known as the Guardian of Truth, but then … well, she disappeared a long time ago."

"Now, she's come back," Uncle Bunny said, sliding a wearied hand along one of his long ears.

Looking up at Mom, I heard her say, "Ok, so what do we do?"

Grandfather North then looked down at the five of us. "Manny has shown us what we are to do."

* * *

**Alright, after some long thinking about how to approach this next chapter, here it is. Now, a part of it does reflect from writergirl142's tale "Snow Mist: Guardian of Imagination," but that's only because we're writing on the same story - only from two different views. So, check it out, it is really cool, trust me. :)**

**Also, can you figure out who Dusty had a sense of? I can't say anything, for it's going to be revealed later in the story. So, please enjoy. :D**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 – A New Spirit

* * *

"The kids? He wants us to send our kids into battle?" I heard Casey cry as Mom softly turned her head away from us for only about a moment.

Wiping a knowing worried tear from one of her eyes, Mom bent down in front of each of us and sat a hand to our cheeks. Saying nothing, she pulled us all in a close hug before she arose back up on her shaky feet with a small and brave smile.

Mom was always protective of us from the start. It had been that way ever since Dad died. Ever since becoming a spirit, it is true that I don't remember every remaining memory about our family tree, but I do remember that love that Mom threaded in us to bear in the future days that followed. She was there for me and my sister whenever we needed her, especially when it was for even the smallest thing. That was just the kind of mother she was, and she was right in telling me that she hadn't changed when Manny changed her into the Guardian of Belief. Granting her the life of a Guardian, our mother was able to fulfill her lifelong wish of being with Sandy. Now, don't get me wrong when I say that she loved our father, she really did. Sandy was just a big part of her life, even from the beginning. I remember hearing our Grandmother Louisiana telling us the story of how she feared that she would have no more children after our aunt, Heather, but then that one night, praying by the Moon, she received a special dream that revealed her rocking a tiny little bundle wrapped in gentle ebony hair and tiny emerald starlit eyes. That's how our Mother partly got her name, Melody Twilight, because she was our Grandmother's last song on a shooting star.

"Casey, if Manny thinks that our kids can handle this, we need to trust him," I heard Jack say as he sat a gentle shoulder on her shoulder. Below them stood little Snow, only she wasn't so little any more. To tell you the truth, she looked a lot more Casey than Jack, but with both of her parents' elements behind her, I knew she would prove to be more than she thought she was.

"Promise me that you'll be careful," I heard Mom whisper to our younger sister as Dusty gently held on to our Mother's hands.

"We will, Mom," Cloud said as she rapped an arm around Dusty, watching as our Mother turned to me.

"Don't worry, Mom, I'll look after both of them."

Smiling a loving grin, she bent down to kiss the side of my cheek like she did so long ago. It still made me blush, but I knew what it meant to her.

"Hey, is this a private party, or can anyone join in?"

Turning my head suddenly, I sensed another high humiliated presence in the room as a tall boy with a two layered top and T-shirt over brown pants stepped into the room. In his hand, I immediately saw a familiar gem-studded staff that I saw many times in the hands of Casey, Jack and Snow. Sure, they never had the same one he was holding, for they each had their own, but it was like Casey's gemmed staff just the same, only in the hues of red and orange.

"Hey, Aunt Casey, long time no see," he greeted her as he leaned on his staff, with one of hands resting on the side of North's higher platform gate.

Moving my gaze over to Casey, I watched as her eyes narrowed in confusion. "Who are you?"

Turning back to him, I studied him from a distance as I heard him say, "The name's Blaze Summer, but I was once Ash Katherine, the older son of your younger brother and my father, Matthew."

"Matthew? Mom, didn't you tell me that was Casey's younger brother?" I heard Dusty ask as she looked up quizzically at our mother. With a quiet nod of her head, Dusty turned back to the others as I slipped back around the corner to think for a moment.

_Summer? I've heard that name before, but where …?_

Resting my head against the wall, I heard Casey and Narain, our Mom's other close friend, talking.

"You told me Matthew had children, one being a daughter named specifically after me. Were you aware of his son?"

"No, only the girl."

Closing my eyes, I slid to my knees as I wiped my flaming hair away from my eyes in perspiration.

"Solar?" Looking up, I saw my sister bending down to my level as I saw little Dusty peek at me from behind her. "Are you alright?"

I was about to answer when I heard Jack's icy tone vibrate over Casey's curious gaze with a serious glare. "Summer."

"Frost," I heard him growl back, evenly.

Closing my eyes in anticipation, I slowly rose back upon my feet as I met my sister's eyes.

"What is it? What's wrong?"

"I know him."

"You mean, you've seen him before?"

"In a way, let's just say I know him pretty personally. Right before …"

"Before what?"

"I can't say … at least not here, not now, not until I can sort things out."

Turning my head away a little, out of the corner of my eye, I caught my sister's puzzled look as she turned back towards the newcomer.

"Why haven't I ever seen you up until now?" I heard Casey ask as I tilted my head to her.

"It wasn't time yet," I heard say quite simply as he loosened his hold on his staff sadly.

"Why not?" I heard Mother say as she rapped an arm around our little sister. Before Mom could get an answer, all eyes turned to Jack before he thumped his staff against the ground in frustration as his grip tightened on it.

"Not time yet? How could it not have been time? Manny ignores Casey for over close to two hundred years, just how he had done me for over nearly three hundred, and, even then when this happens, he doesn't care to tell her about when her nephew became the summer spirit!"

"Whoa, Frostbite, slow down … I'm sure Manny had his reasons …" I heard Bunnymund mutter, slapping a friendly soft paw on his shoulder with a caring grin.

What he said next made me look straight at him in familiarity nature.

"I watched you, Aunt Casey," he said with a soft smile. "Ever since I became the summer spirit, I have watched you become more and more powerful by the day."

North had stepped forward in curiousity as he asked, "May I ask, young man, when did you become the summer spirit?"

"In the summer of 1821," he had answered plainly.

Hearing both Casey and Mom gasp, I turned towards her as I heard my Mom say, "That's when I first met Casey and Narain."

"That's when you first met Auntie Casey by her pond, right Mother?" I heard Dusty ask as she smiled up into Mom's wise eyes.

"Yes, Dusty," she replied with a smile.

Tuning back into the conversation, I heard Narain as she asked, "How did you become the summer spirit?"

"Ah, that is a story for another time," he said a bit mysteriously as his eyes drifted over to where Cloud Whisper and I stood.

Suddenly, his eyes lilted up as he said, "Solar Flare? Is that you? I haven't seen you for ages."

I chuckled nervously as I felt every eye turn to me for a response. "Hey, Blaze."

"Wait, you two know each other?" Casey asked, standing between us.

"_Knew _each other," I replied a bit too harshly, thumping my board back beneath my feet.

Blaze grinned with a chuckle. "He won't say it, but he was jealous when I …"

We were interrupted as we all heard North's voice yell down at one of his little elves as it determinedly pointed to the Globe. All eyes turned to it as we watched the lights around Burgess flickered in and out.

"What's happening?" I heard Dusty cry as I reached her before she fell down from the air where Mom was hovering. Her wings barely flapped the air as she and Tooth reached for each other to steady themselves as they cautiously lowered themselves to the floor.

"Sandy," Mom's voice crossed the room in concern as she watched her husband's sands dissipate off his head in a slow flickering waver.

"Narain," Bunnymund cried as he managed to catch Narain in his arms as he fought to stay upright himself.

"Mom, Dad," we heard Aurora exclaim as she ran to her parents to help steady them to their feet.

"Solar, it's the lights. The belief … it's fading away," my sister said, crouching down next to where Dusty and Snow were standing.

"This is not good," Snow said, gazing at all that was going on around her.

I nodded along with everyone else, for I could sense that it was only the beginning.

* * *

"Solar, what are you doing telling my side of the story?"

"What do you mean? Isn't that how it went?"

"Well, yes, but …"

"Oh, Solar, why don't you just let Dusty tell it?" I heard my sister giggle from behind me.

"I was just about to …"

"I'm teasing with you, Solar," I giggled.

"I know, little sister. After all, I taught you all I know."

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**Haha, this last part is just a little comical thing of humor going on between my three main characters - whisp, solar, and dusty. Hope you're enjoying it. :)**

**This chapter is fully inspired by writergirl142's latest chapter in "Snow Mist: Guardian of Imagination." Although this chapter is told from a different POV, it still reflects the basis of the story to the main sequence of events that's going to happen later in the story. Me and my friends are working on this storyline, so please check out this story from all three sides, which can be found out on writergirl142, arielkatze, and my fan sites on here. Trust me, this story will be awesome. :)**

**Please review if you have suggestions or questions. :)**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8 – Weakness and Burgess

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"Mom!" I remembered my shouts echoing across the room as I watched my parents fall to their knees. Running to them, Cloud Whisper was right behind me as I started to cry at the sight of them both.

Mom could hardly stand as she humbly bent to her knees with her hands encased in Dad's own. Her long snow white hair fell about her face as her enchanted wings flapped feebly down alongside her back. Trying to lift her back up, Cloud and I each grabbed an arm while I reached my other hand around my Dad's waist as we struggled to help them back on their feet.

Looking at Mom and Dad, I could immediately tell that something was wrong. Dad's sandy hair had dulled to a light blonde brown, and there wasn't much dreamsand illuminating from it either. He gripped my hand timidly with a small smile as his eyes ventured over and up to meet Mom's. Lifting her gaze up between us, I saw that the illuminated twilight glow in her blue eyes had glimmered away, and underneath the remaining hue of twilight, tiny slits of dark emerald green laid in the lower corner of her wise eyes. But, the main part of her that was beginning to fade away was her wings. A trail of her fallen moondust followed her as it merely turned to dust at her feet.

"Mom, can you get up?" I heard my sister ask her as she offered Mother one of her firm hands.

"Yeah," she replied with a firm nod, lifting a knowing gaze to mine. With that simple answer, I watched as my sister flapped her feathered wings hard as she pulled Mom up to her feet. Turning to my father, I easily hefted him to lean against me as I levitated him onto one of my starlit clouds.

Following Snow, Aurora, and the others, we sat our parents in North's sitting room, where they practically collapsed against the seats in exhaustion.

"What's going on? Why is this happening?" I asked no one in particular as I leaned in my sister's arms.

"It's Angel Moon," a simple reply came from the door as we all turned to see Blaze come in with a firm hold on his staff.

There was something to the way to the way he was standing, but it didn't cross my mind until I heard Aurora call out, "Why aren't you weakened?"

"Aren't you believed in?" I heard my brother call out at the same time, catching his eye.

"Of course I am, but I'm not a Guardian, yet. Until you actually take the Oath of Guardianship, the loss of belief will not affect you in any way," he answered with a simple nod.

"That's why we aren't weakened," I heard my sister exclaim as she looked around at all the Guardians in the room.

It did prove true, for although we were chosen to be Guardians, we were not being affected by the loss of belief as our parents were.

"You're right!" Snow then exclaimed. "We have yet to be Guardians, because we haven't taken the Oath."

"And we can't do so until we find out our centers," I grinned, joining the voices of Aurora and Snow.

With another nod from his head, Blaze continued, "Exactly, this is our advantage over the Mistress of Deception."

"Advantage?" I heard Aurora ask him with a cocked ear.

"You seem to know a lot about this, Blaze Summer," I heard my brother say to him while turning a firm glare in his direction.

"Yes, because like you, I have been chosen. Look," he gestured with a turn of his head as we watched the crystal rise out of the floor outside the door as Manny's moonlight flashed through it once more. Sure enough, an image of Blaze flashed above it as he turned back to face us with a grin. "See?"

We all turned to each other for a moment in quiet thought, but then all of our eyes followed Snow as she stomped right up to his face with the sternest scowl I had ever seen on her small face. Even though he was taller than her, that didn't mean that Snow was intimidated by him.

"Ok fine, you've been chosen, but that doesn't mean that you're our friend," I heard Snow's icy tone grow as she pointed her crooked gemmed staff up into his face. "So, here is what I suggest, you just keep your mouth zipped shut and do as we say or, I promise you, your fire will be my new practice toy."

Blaze didn't say anything else as she stepped away and turned back to us.

Tilting her raised eyebrows to me for a second, Aurora turned to look Snow in the eye as she said, "Was that even necessary?"

"Even though he proves to be my mother's nephew, I still don't trust him. After all, Manny abandoned my mother."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Auntie Casey's eyes turn to us as I said, "Because it wasn't the time for her to know about him." Solar and Cloud caught my words with a quiet frown.

Snow's angry glare snapped up to me as she said, "I'm sorry, but did you forget that Manny abandoned both of my parents when they needed him the most? I can't just lie that aside."

I could see that Snow was angry with Manny, but I also knew I couldn't say anything to change her mind. I didn't think that Manny had abandoned her parents, but that was up to her to decide upon herself.

"Manny chose him, Snow," I heard my sister say as she and my brother walked up behind her. "That means that you're going to have to trust him."

"If we don't, how could we possibly come to come ourselves Guardians?" Solar then softly said, looking down to meet her eyes. I could tell that he was speaking to both her and himself.

Sighing, she shrugged her shoulders as she said, "Alright, fine, I'll try to get along with him." Pushing past them, she ambled over to where her parents laid as a tender and worrisome frown crossed her mouth.

Like all the rest of the Guardians, including my parents, they weren't looking too well, and even in the stretch of minutes that lingered on, things just continued to grow worse, especially when Aurora and I noticed that Uncle Bunny's ears started to shrink.

Turning to us, Snow then said, "Guys, we need to head to Burgess."

"How?" I heard Aurora say as she gestured a paw up, "We can't travel like our parents, and Snow, you can't even fly yet on your own."

"We can," my brother smiled, brandishing his red slashed green hoverboard beneath his feet. I smiled up at both of them as I proudly saw Cloud ready her wings.

Sighing when she saw Blaze hold up his staff, Snow then said, "Fine, ok, so maybe we do have transport."

"How should we pair up?" Blaze said, tapping his fiery staff against the floor. "I can fly with one of you, maybe even two just as long as I can keep one hand on my staff to keep me in the air …" he said turning to meet the eyes of Snow, Aurora, and me.

Even though Aurora eyed him suspiciously, I watched as Aurora stepped forward to meet his hand as she bravely said, "I'll go, just as long as you don't try any 'hot tricks' along the way."

I couldn't help but feel that there was a reason that Aurora chose to go with him, but I couldn't say for sure. But something told me that she still didn't fully trust my brother's control of his fire powers.

Snow didn't advance from where she stood towards either one of the fire spirits. So, I turned to my sister, who knowingly stepped forward with a gentle hand reaching out towards Snow. With a smile, I saw that she took it gratefully.

So, rapping my hands around my brother's sides, I stepped aboard my brother's hoverboard as we all took off into the air and out through North's skylight. The arctic air immediately met us as we flew out at high speed into the cold winds.

I didn't mind it too much, but, like my mother, I didn't like getting too cold, but I could see that Snow was enjoying it. In order to keep the arctic winds off him, Solar upped the speed on his hoverboard as he took off at the speed of a rocket. However, before he truly took off, he reached out to take Cloud's hand as she rapped the other around Snow's waist tighter, knowing what was going next.

Seeing that Blaze clearly matched his speed perfectly and had a firm but safe hold on Aurora, Solar narrowed his eyes as he willed his board to just take off.

The rush of warm air felt good for a while, but I noticed that my sister had let go some time ago but had still managed to keep pace with him as we sped over the oceans and out into the summer weather of Burgess.

Hearing what my sister was asking Snow, I figured out why. "Are you alright, Snow?"

Touching down on the hot grounds of Burgess, I stepped off of my brother's board to see that Snow had burned her feet on the burning pavement.

Levitating herself a little ways into the air, I heard her mutter, "Great," as he pulled off her black hoodie only to tie it around her waist. "Let's go find Jamie and Maddy. Surely they still believe."

"But, Snow, what about the heat?" Aurora and Cloud asked each in turn as I came over.

"Do you wanna ride on my board, Snow? It would keep you off the hot pavement," my brother said with concern.

"Guys, I got it," my sister said as she took Snow's hands in turn as she held her above the ground. With Snow pointing out the way, we finally found what I came to learn as Jamie and Maddy's house.

Sure enough, the first person to answer the door was Jamie himself. Out of all of us, it seemed like the only one he recognized was Snow.

"Snow," he said, gathering her up into a hug. "What are you doing here? It's the middle of summer."

"Jamie, who is it?" I heard another voice call from inside the door.

"It's Snow, Jack and Casey's daughter, and she's brought friends!"

A second later, a pretty young lady peeked out next to Jamie. "Hey Snow."

"I know it's summer, you guys, but, trust me, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't important," Snow said.

"What happened?"

"A new enemy has arisen, and she's already begun her attack on our parents."

"It's true, sir," Blaze said, seeing the uncertainty in Jamie's eyes. "We've seen it."

"Come in, please, all of you," he said, hurrying Snow inside and out of the heat. As we all assembled into their living room, I saw that he had placed a pan of ice water at her feet. Snow was hotter than I thought.

Jamie turned on a fan close to her face as Snow introduced us all. "These are my friends … Aurora …" she paused to take a breath. " … and Dusty, Solar Flare, and Cloud Whisper … and other there … is Blaze Summer … my …"

"I'm her cousin," Blaze said, smiling at the familiarity in Maddy's face. Sure enough, it was clear that Maddy reminded him of his father, Matthew.

As Blaze and Solar caught Jamie and Maddy up on everything, my eyes stayed on Snow as she continued to perspire even against the cooling breeze of the fan.

"Cloud, I don't it's going to be enough," I whispered to her and Aurora as we made our way over to Snow. Sure enough, I was right, because right when we came into her eyesight, Snow had laid back unconscious.

Aurora immediately laid a warm paw up to her forehead as she said, "She's overheated."

Maddy and Jamie were immediately by our sides. "What can we do?"

"Snow, wake up, honey," Maddy said, gently shaking her shoulder.

I saw Blaze rush up to us, but he stayed back knowing that Snow wasn't supposed to get too hot. I could by his expression that he was almost afraid even to touch her. He did care, but because of his fire powers, he struggled to hold back.

Lifting her head, I saw that Cloud Whisper had an idea. "Wait, everybody, we may not abilities over water and ice, but I do know two who do, and they can help her."

"Natura?" My brother asked knowingly with a smile.

"And Misty," she said as pulled out her golden crossbow. "Just give me one moment."

Staying by Snow's side, I watched as my sister flew over to the window. Aiming her crossbow high, she aimed at the nearest cloud she could see, and, by radiating a light beam arrow to appear on the bow, she released it as it illuminated the cloud next to the midday summer sun.

Sure enough, after a few moments, I felt wing vibrations hover outside the windowpane as three of my sister's Nature Dryads appeared from out of the sky.

"What is it, Cloud Whisper?" Natura, the Dryad of Mist, said as she hovered close to my sister's side. "Is there a problem?"

"I need your and Misty's help. Snow, the youngest of our small group, has become overheated and I need your help to cool her down," my sister said ushering them in through the door and over to Snow's side.

From the window, another dryad peeked in the window while resting on her arms. With her eyes scanning the rooms, she spotted Solar Flare standing beside me as a gentle sigh parted from her lips. "Hi, Solar."

Looking up at her with a blushed grin, he said, "Oh, hi Heather."

Turning back to my sister, I watched as Natura and Misty set to work. Misty, who was my sister's Dryad of Vapor, prepped her hands as she watched Natura swish the air with just a hand as I felt the air around Snow become cool and moistened. Misty, feeling the water vapor in the air, rushed it towards Snow's skin and face as I gently touched a hand to her forehead. Sure enough, Snow was beginning to cool down, and with that simple air adjustment, her skin starter to feel cooler and colder as her cold and wet protections started to build back up. However, peeking my head out over at Maddy, I still felt that there was one more thing I could do.

So, calling Maddy aside, I asked her, "Do you happen to have a small pair of boots, maybe?"

About a minute later, Snow began to open her eyes as she first saw the smiles of Misty and Natura standing beside her. Shaking with uncertainty, Snow gripped her staff as she pushed herself to her feet.

"Snow, it's ok, Misty and Natura just wanted to help. Thank you," my sister said as she watched them all fly back out into the sky, out of sight within the clouds.

Aurora and Blaze smiled as Snow grinned wiped a stray piece of hair out of her one of her eyes.

"Uh, Snow?" I waited until she turned to me as I passed her a pair of Maddy's old rain boots. "Would these help?"

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**Here's another chapter. Hope you enjoy it. :D**


	9. Chapter 9 OC Dusty

Chapter 9 – OC Dusty

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Name: Dustidell "Dusty" Starlight

Appearance: Long, wavy silver hair with two golden star barrettes resting on the sides of her head, twilight blue eyes, Pale skin with a slight tan complexion, long sleeved lavender sweater with a soft silver collar, a star stringed necklace, dark silver pants, purple boots

Weapons/Abilities: Like her father, Dusty can whip out stardust infused sand whips, which she is not afraid to use to defend herself. Also, like her parents, she has the ability to call upon and form sand from not only her fingertips, but also from her silver hair as well. She can float, as well as streak along on a shooting cloud. However, like her brother, Dusty can also form enchanted wish sand bombs at projectiles. Same as her mother, Dusty seems to have a deep sense of inner knowing and a keen mind when it comes to listening to the quiet yearning of hearts.

Bio: Dusty was born April 14, 2014, at the foot of her mother's enchanted magic fountain in the Silent Glade. Raised in the sky and her mother's Silent Glade, Dusty came to know the sky as her dearest home. Around the age of 4, her parents had took her out to gaze upon the stars, where she had begun to hear the silent whispers of children's wishes everywhere. Like her father sanded his dreams, Dusty then found her calling when she began to grant her very first wishes for others.

After that first night of granting wishes, Dusty, along with her brother and sister, are brought to the North Pole, where she meets her one of her best friends, Aurora Borealis. At the Pole, she learns that she might be destined one day to join her parents as a true Guardian but only if she were her find her center. After about two years, back at the Pole for another meeting of the Guardians, Dusty then meets her second best friend, Snow Mist.

Even at the present age of twelve, Dusty finds that she has experienced a feeling for her center but has not fully discovered what it might be. When her parents' and the rest of the Guardians are threatened by a new threat, Dusty finds herself thrown into a life-changing venture against the so-called past Guardian named Angel Moon, who has now become the Mistress of Deception. Alongside her siblings, Snow, Aurora, and newcomer, Blaze Summer, Dusty discovers why she was called to be a Guardian.

Looking up to both her parents and her siblings, Dusty proves to be the shyest of them all, but she proves to have a playful personality when it comes to playing with her brother and sister. Just about an inch lower than her sister, Dusty comes to stand to resemble her mother with her twilight blue eyes and long silver hair, but she proves to have her father's temperament in battle.

Family:

Parents – Melody Twilight Icesparkle/Windsong "Song" (music spirit / Guardian of Belief); The Sandman "Sandy" (Guardian of Dreams)

Siblings - Zackary Mitchell Icesparkle/Solar Flare (fire spirit); Lindsey Michelle Icesparkle/Cloud Whisper (sky spirit)

Uncles/Aunts – Heather "Thia" Delight Anderson (Melody's older sister); George Anderson (Melody's brother in law)

Cousins – Sally "Sal" Anderson (Heather's daughter), Johnathon "John" Anderson (Heather's son)

Grandpa Figure – Nicholas St. North [Santa Claus – Spirit of Christmas / Guardian of Wonder]

Uncle Figures – E. Aster Bunnymund "Bunny", Jack Frost

Aunt Figures – Toothiana "Tooth", Narain Hart, Casey Aqua

Friends – Aurora Borealis, Snow Mist, Blaze Summer, Castor

Enemies – Pitch Black, Angel Moon

* * *

And, now, a little info on the twins (Solar Flare and Cloud Whisper)

Solar Flare – Spirit of Fire

Appearance: Tall and thin with a muscular upper built, wears a two-toned split shirt that is half black while the other half blends into red and orange on the opposite sleeve that is tugged in under a black studded belt, earth brown legging pants, red soled bark boots, spiked up fiery hot blonde hair with a hidden strand of electric blue running along under the brow when it's soaked, brown eyes

Weapons/Abilities: hurls potential fire bombs at enemies as he can zoom past his obstacles and oppopents at rocket speeds. Solar Flare can float and/or fly via his red slashed green hoverboard, and can fly anywhere at nearly the speed of light. He has high-intensed senses, low levels of fatigue, can restore plants via plant rejuvenation, and can become a living inferno of flame.

Love Interest: Heather [Dryad of Rays - one of Cloud Whisper's Nature Dryad], Luna (Spirit of Time/Space)

Other Names: Solar, Sola, Hot Beak

Cloud Whisper – Spirit of the Sky

Appearance: Tall with a slight hour-glass curved figure, wears a long sleeved silver top adorned with a twilight blue moonbeam belt following a long flowing pink soft skirt, pink knee-high boots, feathered angelic wings, pink fuzzy star earrings, brown eyes

Weapons/Abilities: can shoot off light-infused arrows on her crossbow. Cloud Whisper can also whistle any tune on her flute, while having abilities over Illumination, Flight, and controlling/sculpting the weather around her. She is especially good at formulating clouds by her hands, and is very observant and understanding.

Love Interest: Castor

Other Names: Cloud, Whisp, Sky Fairy

Helpers: The Nature Dryads [ Heather – Dryad of Rays; Tori – Dryad of Thunder; Sunglow – Dryad of Rainbows; Natura – Dryad of Mist; Misty – Dryad of Vapor; Zapurta – Dryad of Lightning ]

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**Hope this allows you to get to know who my characters are, and help you figure out what their centers will be later in the story. **


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 9 – Striking Up a Plan

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"Thanks Dusty," Snow said, hesitantly taking the black electric blue snowflake designed boots from my outstretched hands. With a sigh, Snow then sat down to slip them on her bare feet.

Watching her shuffle across the floor with them on immediately made me a little nervous, because I knew that she was practically like her parents, Uncle Jack and Auntie Casey, when it came to being barefoot, they loved it and so did she. Seeing Snow slip on the rain boots made me think back to the time where Mom introduced me to sandals instead of boots like my brother and sister wore. Although they were pretty securely tied around my ankles, I often lost my footing with them when I was first learning how to walk. The ivy grass buckles had often snagged on my pant leggings and made me trip. It was soon after that that Mom had given me my first pair of purple boots.

"Those boots aren't mine, Snow. They're Maddy's," I said, watching as Maddy smiled down at Snow.

With a nod, Maddy simply said, "I thought that those just might fit your style."

"Thanks," Snow said, again, as she turned to the rest of us with a determined face. "Ok, so what happened?"

Aurora rested one of her paws at her side as she brought the other one up to Snow's shoulder. "Well, in a nutshell, Slushy, you overheated."

"And, then you fainted," Blaze finished, earning himself a glare on behalf of Snow before she brought a hand up to her face with a groan.

"And, now we've lost time!"

"No, we haven't Snow," my sister said gently, waiting until Snow looked up at her curiously yet expectedly.

"Because we think we know why children's belief in the Guardians is fading away," my brother said as Snow and I beamed hopefully.

"You mean, you've figured it out?" I asked excitedly. Like everyone else, my mindset was on saving our parents, but if were to stand any chance against Angel Moon, we needed know why and how she did what she does.

Jamie held a hand up to his chin as he thought, "Well, Angel Moon is the Mistress of Deception, right?"

Snow, Aurora and I each nodded our heads in turn of agreement as Aurora said, "Yeah, that's what the Guardians told us."

"So, if the kids have started to lose faith and not believe anymore then that can mean only one thing," Jamie concluded, turning to his wife.

"Angel Moon is using her powers over deception to make the kids doubt the Guardians," Maddy then concluded simply.

Taking it all in, I tilted my head towards Snow as she asked, "Then how is it that you two still believe? I mean, shouldn't you be doubtful as well?"

"We are two of the only few kids who have ever met most of you guys in person," Jamie said, also looking up at my brother and sister. "And, Maddy and I, we have managed to keep our belief even into adulthood." Turning to Snow, he proudly said, "After all, I was your father's, Jack's, first believer."

Maddy nodded, too, with a smile as she replied, "As I was your mother's, Casey's, first believer."

Proudly rapping an arm around Maddy's shoulders, Jamie said, "Nothing in this world could ever get us to stop believing, not even the Mistress of Deception herself, not after everything your parents and the rest of the Guardians did for us."

I smiled up at them happily, sensing the truth behind their words, but my eyes turned over to my brother as he said, "Okay, but what about the rest of your friends? You know, the ones who helped all our parents beat Pitch over fourteen years ago? What happened with them?"

"I know, without a doubt, that Cupcake and Monty still believe," Jamie replied. "But Pippa's belief was wavering even before Angel attacked us."

"She's already attacked you?!" Blaze asked determinedly, undeniably upset, as he fiercely clutched his staff in his hands so tighter that the room immediately began to feel hotter than before. Aurora and I immediately felt it so fast that we instinctively brought Snow within the full blast of the fan to keep her cool. Blaze, seeing what was happening, unclenched his hold on his staff as he rested it gently against the arm of the Bennett's armchair.

Jamie continued, "As for the twins, Claude and Caleb, Claude has stopped believing completely and Caleb's isn't falling too far behind Claude's."

"Is there a chance that Caleb still believes?" my sister asked with concern.

Jamie just shrugged as he said, "I honestly don't know."

"Mica still believes," Maddy said, taking up the list. "However, Sarah stopped believing as soon as we entered our sophomore year of high school."

Snow nodded as she said, "Okay, so only a part of the group who stood up to the Fear King can still be relied on."

"Hey, wait a minute, Sophie still believes," Jamie said protectively, thinking on his little sister. "And, I'm also pretty sure that Bunny still comes to visit her from time to time."

Aurora's paw dropped from Snow's arm when she heard that. "He does? Without me," she murmured, her eyes flashing with hurt as tears poured down from her green irises. Instantly, Snow's and my hands went around our friends to comfort her.

"Hey," Jamie said gently, sensing her sadness as well, "I could call her, that way you could meet her."

Aurora only nodded her head as she continued to cry, her bunny ears sadly drooping over Snow's and my head.

"Come on, Aurora," my sister said gently as we led her into the kitchen while Jamie made the call.

A little while later, a knock evidently reached our ears as I heard Jamie say, "Sophie, you came."

"Of course I did, Jamie. I wouldn't miss a second of all this without you. Hello Maddy, how has my brother been treating you these days? Oh, and please don't tell me that this can't be little itty-bitty Snow, can it?"

_Itty-bitty? _Meeting Aurora's eyes with a hidden giggle, we shared a chuckle in quiet laughter. Snow may have little for her age, but we both knew that she hated to be treated like a baby or as a tiny doll. Sure, she may have only a few less inches as tall as Auntie Casey, but that didn't mean that she didn't have twice as much spunk as her parents put together. No, Snow was somebody who could prove that the biggest surprises could come from the littlest packages.

Chuckling, I heard Jamie say, "Sophie, why don't we put Snow down? She needs to breathe."

"Walking into the kitchen, we all turned to hear Sophie say, "Jamie, you don't need to talk to me like I'm five. It's just I haven't seen her in so long, you know?"

Walking over to us, Snow pointed us out to Sophie as she said, "Sophie, I'd like to introduce you to my friends. This is Dusty, daughter of Sandy and Windsong. Over there are her siblings and Song's twins, Solar Flare and Cloud Whisper. Standing over there, that's Blaze Summer, he's my … cousin," Snow said as she paused to rest a hand on Aurora's chair. "And this Aurora, Bunny and Narain's daughter."

Looking up at her, Aurora said, "So, you're Sophie. My Dad has told me a lot about you."

Sophie only smiled as she replied, "And, you're Aurora. Oh, Bunny wasn't exaggerating when he told me about his little girl."

After a little time together, Aurora and Sophie found that they had a lot in common, namely on account of Uncle Bunny.

"Alright Jamie, tell me what's going on here. I can tell that you're not telling me something very important I should know."

"I think that we can fill you in on that part," Blaze began, coming to stand next to her chair.

So, as we filled her in on everything that we know, she said, "Well then, I'll certainly do everything I can to help. This is just too important to not do anything about it." Turning to Jamie, she said, "Jamie, what are you doing just standing there? Go on and call up your friends about this."

"I was just about to do that, Soph. Just give a second, alright? I got to go look up their numbers," Jamie said, rushing off into the hall.

"Meanwhile, I'll call up Mica and see if she can do anything to help us as well," Maddy said, rising to her feet.

"Here, Maddy, let me come with you," Snow said, hurrying after her.

Meanwhile, Jamie came back in with a pocket directory, filled with his friend's numbers.

"Ok, I'll start with Cupcake's since she's right here at the top. Let's just hope she's home," Jamie said, picking up the main phone.

"Wait, shouldn't we start with Monty?" Blaze said over by the window. "Just call it a hunch."

"Oh, alright. I'll give it a try," Jamie said as he dialed the number. Listening for a moment, he spoke up, "Yeah, is Monty there … You're where? The park? What are you doing there? Looking for your journal, huh? No, don't worry about that, I'll keep it confidential. Yeah, just between you and me," he said casually, looking back at our faces. Already Blaze and my brother were stifling laughs, obviously thinking it was a diary of some sorts. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. They didn't know, and neither did I. "Hey, listen, we've got some pretty interesting visitors here that you might want to meet. And, it's very important that you listen to what I'm fixing to tell you very closely. There's a new threat on the loose against the Guardians … No, I don't think it's the Boogeyman … He's gone, remember, Monty … Well, I know you said you thought it was just a dream, but trust me, this is the real thing and we need you to come right away … What do you mean you can't tear yourself away? … Alright, well get here as soon as you can … You never know what's going to happen if we don't stick together … What do I mean? I'll tell you as soon as you get over here … It concerns the Guardians … Yes, there is a new threat out there called Angel Moon, and she calls herself the Mistress of Deception … Who else is coming? Well, Cupcake and Mica, Maddy's friend … Oh, you'll be right over? … Great, well … What about everyone else? … You know Claude doesn't believe anymore, and I'm not sure if Caleb would come without Claude … Alright, call me when you're on your way," Jamie finally finished as he hung up the phone.

"Well, whatever I said must have convinced him, Monty's coming," Jamie said, turning to us.

"Now, what about Cupcake?" my brother asked.

"Who even names their child, Cupcake?" I heard Blaze say.

"Blaze, now's not the time," my brother said, walking over to stand next to Jamie.

"Solar is right you know, if Cupcake heard you say that … Well, let's just say she would hit you over the head with a snowball if she had one," Jamie said as he dialed another number.

"Just don't let her catch you calling her anything other than Cupcake," Jamie said, listening for an answer. "Oh … What? No, not you Cupcake, I was talking to some friends that I thought that you might like to meet. Yeah, they're over here, now … Remember the Guardians? These are their kids I'm talking to … No, no joke … You see, there's a new threat out … Yeah, and they want to help … Is it Pitch? No, it's someone new … Her name is Angel Moon … What? You've heard about her … Monty just called you? And, you're on your way? … Well, great … In fact, that's what I was calling you about … Yeah, we'll all meet here at my house and decide on the best strategy course … Alright, see you when you get here."

"Was that Cupcake?" I heard Maddy ask as she came back into the room with Snow tagging along behind her.

"Yeah, she's on her way," Jamie said, sitting down on his couch.

_Rrrrr-inggggg_, the phone vibrated as Jamie looked from Maddy to us and then back to the phone.

"Don't worry, Jamie, I'll get it," Maddy said, walking up to reach the phone. Holding it to her ear, she said, "Hello. Oh, Monty, didn't Jamie just call you?"

Our ears all perked up when we heard her say, "Claude and Caleb, are you sure? They're at the park? Now? Well, sure I can be there in a second, but aren't you already on your way?" She paused as she looked down into Jamie's face. "You went to go pick up some papers, and then the next time you looked up, you saw them out by Burgess Pond. Ok, got ya, and you want one of us to meet you there? Alright, well, we'll see you in a bit, then."

"Was that Monty? He's coming, isn't he?" Jamie said, standing to his feet.

"Yeah, he had a little bit of car trouble, and then he forgot his keys accidently by his bench, and then he went back to pick up some secret papers, he said, all while calling Cupcake about what you told him," Maddy said with a laugh.

"Yeah, he said that he had called her. Well, I better hurry if I'm going to go pick him up," Jamie said, starting to straddle on his boots.

"No, Jamie, I can handle this one," Maddy said with a smile.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it won't be that long, and there's a chance that we might catch up to Claude and Caleb while we're there."

"We?"

"Yeah, I was wondering if the girls wanted to come along," Maddy said turning to me, Aurora, Snow, and my sister as we stood over by the fan.

"How about it, Snow? The car's air-conditioned and has good UV protection."

Watching the rest of us smile, Snow then said determinedly, "Sure, let's go."

* * *

**Here's the next chapter. Hopefully, the next chapter will be easier, this one took some planning along with writergirl142 to determine the next course of action. Next up, we'll see some of the original believers from the movie "Rise of the Guardians."**

**Please review if you have any suggestions about what you would like to see where we go next with the conflicts with Angel Moon.**


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 10 – To Believe or Not to Believe

* * *

"Whisp, how do you think Mom and Dad are faring?"

I didn't fail in seeing the worried sketches along my sister's deep brown eyes as she rapped an arm and a wing around my shoulder. "I'm sure they're fine, Dusty," she murmured softly, sitting a hand on one of mine to help comfort me.

Like my sister, I was just worried about our parents and how they were faring against the continuing strands of disbelief and doubt. Although we were chosen, it's true that we didn't feel the effects on our parents, but I could tell we could feel the discouragement of it all.

"You girls staying cool back there?" I heard Maddy ask us as she tilted her head back over her shoulder at me, Aurora, and my sister. Snow was sitting up front with Maddy near the front seat, where she getting the full blowing jets of the air conditioner.

In the back seat, Aurora and I were sharing the middle seat because it seated two people while my sister sat next to me by the window. She had the window cracked just a little, so we could enjoy a little of the summer sun weather.

"Yeah, Maddy, it's fine. Thanks," Aurora said, her ears catching the breeze as the sun warmed her face.

"What's wrong, Dusty dear? Are you worried about your Mom?" Maddy asked me, her compassionate eyes looking back at me as we stopped as a crossing light.

"And my Dad," I answered quietly, laying my head against my sister's shoulder.

"Aw Dusty, it's ok," my sister said gently. "Hey, I'm sure they're ok."

"Why did you think this Angel Moon chose to attack now?" Aurora asked us all as she thought.

"I don't know," Snow said glancing back at us. "You would think it would be sooner, or maybe … Huh, maybe it's the timing, or it could be something really serious that we're overlooking."

"Well, I don't think we're overlooking anything in general, but I did have a sense about something ..." I started to say as Snow and Aurora both turned to look at me.

"About what?" Snow asked, moving her staff to her other hand.

"Yeah," Aurora said. "Is there anything else that you could think of that could help us figure out exactly who this Angel Moon is?"

"What is it, Dusty?" Maddy said as we turned another corner.

Looking gently up into my sister's encouraging eyes and turning back to the others, I said, "Well … Whisp, do you remember that you sung the song _Twinkle,Twinkle Little Star_ right before we left?"

My sister nodded her head as I continued, "Well, during that moment, I became aware of a guarded face that reminded me of that phrase 'the traveler in the dark.' I just can't help but feel that that's important."

Snow and Aurora looked quizzically at each other for a moment before my sister repeated, "A traveler in the dark?"

"Yeah, his face looked real guarded, almost like he was holding a secret and …"

Whoa, whoa, whoa … Hold on, Dust," Snow said as Maddy pulled to another stop. "That can't be Angel Moon. As far as we know, Angel Moon is not a he, she is a she."

"All I know is that I perceived something. It could have something to do with Angel Moon, could it?" I asked, looking up at my sister, who knew me so well.

"Maybe, Dusty, you never know," my sister said with a smile.

Aurora and Snow didn't seem too sure as they simply looked at each other in secret thought. Maddy, however, smiled back at all of us as she announced, "Well, we're here. Now, let's see if we can find Monty."

I probably should have said something earlier, or you might have known already, about Snow not liking or enjoying closed off places. Well, this proved true when Maddy unlocked all of the car doors at once, and Snow's was the first one to open.

Pushing aside the door so quickly and making us think she was going to take off flying into the summer air off on her own, we all watched as she just practically flew out of the car screaming, "Freedom!"

"Snow … the heat …," Aurora, my sister and I screamed at her as we rushed off after her.

Maddy just stood by the car dazed, slapping a hand to her head as she remembered that Snow was not comfortable in closed tight places.

"Hey Maddy," Monty said, waving at her from the entrance of the park gate.

Looking up, Maddy looked up to see Monty walk over. "Are those the Guardians' kids I saw run by?"

Maddy sighed inwardly with a small smile. "Yep, that's them. And, here they come."

Walking along next to my sister and Aurora, I quietly held a hand to my mouth as Aurora practically pulled Snow out of the sun and under a tree. Halfway turning to where Maddy and Monty stood in the entryway to the park, Aurora said something I couldn't hear into Snow's ear as Snow lowered her head in a sheepish expression.

"Girls, come over and meet Monty," Maddy called over to us with a smile as we joined her under the shade. "This is Snow, Casey and Jack's daughter, as I've told you, and this is Aurora, Bunny and Narain's daughter."

"Hey, I think I recognize you," Monty said, turning to my sister. "Aren't you one of Windsong's twins?"

"Yep, and this is my little sister, Dusty," my sister told him proudly. "She is my mother's youngest child, but, unlike Solar and I, she is actually the Sandman's daughter, too."

"Awesome," Monty said, pushing up his spectacles. "Uh, I wish these would fit. They keep sliding down my nose."

"Here, may I see them?"

Monty looked at me curiously as he handled them over. "Well, sure, but be careful."

"What are you going to do, Dusty?" Maddy asked me as she bent down to watch as I simply held them out in my hands.

"Watch and see," my sister said I closed my eyes in concentration. Although my eyes were closed, I felt a breeze flicker past my silver hair as it started to ripple across my shoulders. With a smile, I lifted the small glasses higher with one hand as I welled sparkly misty purple stardust from my fingertips to cover them entirely. Folding them over in my hands once, I imagined them shrinking just a tiny bit as I felt the change. Opening my eyes, I saw Maddy and Monty's eyes widen as I passed Monty's spectacles back into his hands.

"Try them now. Do they fit?" I said simply with a smile.

"Why, yes, they do. Thank you," he smiled, raising them to the light. "Now, I see why they call you Dusty."

I innocently beamed before I heard Snow ask, "You saw Claude and Caleb, right?"

"Yeah, they were over by Burgess Pond when I last saw them," he said, tilting his head in her direction.

"Burgess Pond? What were they doing there?" Snow immediately asked. Clearly that was where her home was.

"Beats me; All I heard was arguing," Monty said, turning to Maddy.

"Then, we better get over there," Maddy nodded to Snow as we all took off into the park.

"Here, this way, I know a short cut," Snow said, leading the way past a clearing.

Coming through a huge clump of bushes, Maddy and Monty helped Snow push some aside as we looked out to clearly see Claude and Caleb sitting out by Burgess Pond, or actually one of them, the other, Claude it had to be, was ambled up next to a tree waiting albeit to leave.

"Caleb, come on, the Guardians aren't here. So, let's go already," Claude said with a glance down towards his watch. He wore his dark black hair sleeked back as he tugged as his two piece navy suede jacket collar uncomfortably.

"How do you know, Claude? Don't you remember seeing Jack Frost that night when Pitch attacked us?"

A second voice came out from under a red brown beanie cap as one of the twins sat the other direction towards the water on the surface on Burgess Lake. Pulling his blue sweater off, he wiped a hand through his dark hair as he looked up at his brother. "Why are you not wondering why Jack isn't here?" Caleb asked his brother.

"It was just a dream, Caleb. A dream back when we were kids."

"You know it wasn't," Caleb said with a desperate tear. "It's like you don't even want to believe anymore."

"Believe in what, Caleb? The Guardians? We haven't even seen them for the longest of times. Besides, I believe in reality, not fantasy."

"Well, if it wasn't for your dreams, you couldn't even exist in reality!"

"You want reality? Look around, what do you see? An empty pond? No ice to cover it?"

"It's summer, Claude. Maybe Jack is bringing winter somewhere else."

"_No, he's not," _I heard Snow whisper as she gripped her staff with a worried and determined eye.

"How do you know?" Claude asked challengingly.

"Look, Claude. Just because you cannot find it in your heart to believe anymore, it doesn't mean that I have to give it up, too."

"Very well, it's up to you, but when will you see that what you experienced was only a dream?"

"I wish you could just open your eyes and see what's in front of you. The Guardians are real!"

"Oh yeah, then where are they?"

"They're -"

"Yeah, not here."

Snow's eyes narrowed as she tightened her grip on her staff. Already the air was started to feel colder. Aurora was looking upset, too, and I had to say that I was, too, knowing that our parents have been there for them, in more ways than one.

"Caleb wants to believe, but it doesn't seem that Angel has anything on him," my sister said, stating the obvious.

"It's Claude that's deafening it. His light has already went out, you can tell by the fact that he doesn't believe anymore," Aurora said, turning to Snow. "What are you going to do?"

Turning to face us before she stepped out of the bush cover, Snow said, "It's not Claude I want to assure, it's Caleb. He's where we should start."

"Follow my lead," she said, striding out into the clearing.

Raising her staff, Snow threw it down to hit the ground as she dove headfirst into Burgess Pond. Only a few moments had passed before we started to see a slippery thin sheet of ice start to cover the lake where she dove in.

"Caleb, come on, this stuff was fun when we were kids, but we're grown up now. It's time we stopped believing in fairy tales."

"Fairy tales? Is that what you think they are? Well, I know better because I've seen it, and you've seen it, too. You just don't like to admit it that you did."

"Admit what? There's nothing more to …" he started to say as a sudden wet snowball, that was more water than snow, hit him in the back in the head.

"You got that right," we heard Snow say in the distance as she juggled another ready snowball in her other hand as she fetched her staff from the water.

Caleb, watching the snowball come out of nowhere, squinted towards Snow in the distance, but because of his wavering belief, he just barely saw the crook of her staff as she made a light snow fall over his head.

"Jack Frost?" Caleb called out with a smile as he saw snowflakes dance about his head as one of them turned to water on his nose.

"Not quite, Caleb, that's Snow," Maddy said as she and Monty walked over to meet him.

"Maddy," Caleb said, looking up at them and then back up to the snow. "It's good to see you, but I know that this is Snow."

Maddy laughed as we all joined her at the side of the lake. "No, Caleb. It's really Snow Mist's work, and she's right behind you."

Caleb turned his head in a gasp as he sure enough saw a little version of both of the ice and water spirits that he had known as the winter and water spirits of Burgess. Snow just smiled at his reaction.

Making a snowflake form in her hand and then change to the shape of a dewdrop, Snow said, "Do you see me now?"

Caleb just nodded with a laugh as Claude pushed himself off the light snow on the ground.

"Wait a minute," Claude said, slipping on the edge of the icy pond as Monty helped him to his feet. "Maddy? What are you doing here?"

"Well, we were hoping that you and Caleb could help us with a little problem," she answered, looking over at us and then back to the twins.

"What problem? What's going on?" Caleb asked with concern.

"Come with us and we'll explain everything," Monty said, giving the twins a convincing smile.

"Explain what? You haven't exactly said what we need to know?" Claude said, leaning against the tree.

"In a single phrase, guys, the Guardians are in danger," Maddy said to them, "and they need our help."

Caleb just smiled, but Claude scoffed as he said, "The Guardians? They actually need _our _help?"

"Yes, they do," Maddy said desperately, irritation becoming quite noticeable in her voice.

"What exactly do the Guardians need us to do? They haven't exactly done anything for us," Claude argued with a rueful grin.

Aurora groaned as she turned to meet mine and Snow's eyes. "Here we go again. What is it with this guy?"

"Last I remembered, Claude was one of the most faithful of Jamie's friends when they stood up to Pitch," my sister said to us, joining our circle.

"He is not going to be easy to convince by the way he's acting," I said, cueing back into the conversation.

"The Guardians haven't been there for me, why should I be there for them?" Claude shot out.

"Remember that moment when Pitch …" Maddy tried, again, but she was interrupted when Claude held up a hand.

"I don't need for you to remind me. Maybe I do recall that moment, but … get this … it was only a dream."

"A dream can be real," I said softly. "Something tells me he wants to remember, but because my Dad put everyone to sleep the night all the Guardians left, I think that's one of the main reasons he doesn't believe."

"You may be right, Dusty, but his non-cooperative nature tells me differently," Aurora said, frowning at the scene.

Snow was boiling with anger watching them by this time as she whispered, "If he tells off our parents one more time …"

"Nothing you say, Maddy, will convince me differently. We're leaving," he said, turning to Caleb.

"No, I'm going," Caleb said to him as he picked up his beanie cap from off the ground and setting it back on his dark head. "The Guardians need us to be there for them like they were for us."

"You're seriously believing all this?" Claude said with a scoff.

"Yes, and if you don't want to make a fool of yourself, you'll come with us, because if you don't, then I'm afraid you may be buried in a snow ditch," he said, glancing Snow's way.

"He's tempting me," Snow said with a wry grin towards us. "Should I do it?" She held up another final ready snowball as Aurora and I looked at each other with a shared grin.

"Caleb, enough. This is kids' stuff …" Claude said, starting to walk after him.

"Do it," Aurora and I said at the same time as Snow evidently hurled the snowball at him.

Colliding with the back of his head, Claude lost his footing and fell face first deep into the snow. Looking up, he brushed the wet snow and dirt off his face as he looked at his brother as he heard Caleb say, "Now, are you ready to come with us?"

* * *

As we watched Maddy file everyone into the car, I watched as Snow held an arm to her shoulder as she was thinking of the crowded ride back.

"Hey Snow," I called, earning her attention and also Aurora's and my sister's eyes, too.

"How about we catch a ride back to Jamie's in my sandy copter?"

"Is it outside?" She asked with a smile.

"Yes, but I can also make it where you don't feel the summer heat at all on the way back," I said confidently, raising my hand to form my early version of my helicopter.

* * *

**Here's the next chapter. I didn't keep to incorporate all I had planned for this one, but for the next chapter, it will be included. So, please enjoy. :D**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 11 – New Friends and Allies

* * *

"Come on, Pippa, what are you waiting for?" Claude challenged her as we all watched him and Sarah file out the door. Pippa was wasn't too far behind, but she kept looking back at us like she wanted to stay.

Reaching out to gently touch her shoulder, my sister said, "Please stay. You need to trust us, we're telling you the truth."

"Claude, didn't you hear that?" Pippa asked, holding her breath.

"Did you?" He said with a smirk. "I didn't hear nothing, and neither did you."

Like Snow, I was about ready to blow my top, but Solar held me back by my arm as Aurora did the same with Snow.

"Pippa, don't you believe us?" Jamie asked her as a tear washed down the side of her face.

"I'm sorry, Jamie, I don't know if I can," she sniffed as she stepped out the door. "I wish you luck though."

"Ooh," Aurora growled, watching the door slam shut. Stomping her foot against the floor, we all heard Claude yell out as a small pebble pecked him in the back of the head as it harmlessly fell to the ground with a strange radiance.

"Aurora?" I asked, looking straight at her as a smug smile crossed her lips.

With one ear pinned back against her hair, she held out a hand aloft and said, "He got on my nerves, too."

Suddenly as we heard Snow click her staff against the ground, we all turned to watch her as she wiped a hot hand across her sweating forehead. "Guys, we better head back to the Pole. The heat … it's getting to me, again."

Chuckling, Aurora sat her hands on her shoulders as she said, "Of course, we wouldn't want you to pass out again."

"In that case, girls, here is a little something for you for your trip back," Maddy smiled as she handed me a plump bag of sandwiches. "There's one for each of you. I hope you peanut butter and jelly."

A lot of us smiled as we each took one out of the bag before we all hurried out the door to head off. Watching my sister with Snow in hand, I hopped on after my brother as I rapped my arms around his waist as he took off on his hoverboard.

Following my sister who was just ahead, the wind beat in our ears, but looking down for a moment, I noticed that Aurora and Blaze were still in front of Jamie and Maddy's house as everyone came out to bid us a farewell. Finally after a word with Maddy and Jamie, Aurora joined Blaze as they rushed up to catch up with us as the midday summer sun rose to rest in our shadows.

* * *

"The North Pole," my brother announced as we touched down before my sister.

Hearing Snow's laugh, I turned to see her dive headfirst into a fresh snow bank. "Oh, fresh cold, I feel better all ready."

Giggling, I immediately pulled out a shawl as I materialized it out of the air and rapped it across my silver collar. With my hand resting on my star, my gaze shot up as I rushed forward towards Santa's workshop.

"Dusty, wait," I heard my sister call after me as I pushed open the door.

"Where are you going in such a hurry?" Aurora said, catching up with the same thought in mind.

"I'm going in to check on Mom before I do anything else, you can come with me or no, but I'm going in. I haven't stopped thinking her and Dad since we just left them here," I said, running in.

Joined on the elevator with Aurora and my sister, we all stood up perplexed when we heard shouting coming in from North's observatory.

"NOW, WHY WOULD YOU GO AND CHOOSE THEM BEHIND MY BACK? I'VE GOT AS MUCH A RIGHT TO KNOW YOU'RE BUSINESS, FOR YOU SEE IT CONCERNS ME, TOO."

"Who was that?" I asked my friends as we entered the other room where our parents were.

"I don't know, it's not anyone I've heard like that before," Aurora said, raising her ears.

Before my sister could reply, a familiar voice caught our ears.

"Girls, what did Jamie and Maddy have to say?"

Turning our heads, Cloud and I immediately gasped when we saw our Mother slowly walk up to us. However, my twilight blue eyes nearly sparked up with shock as I found myself staring into the famililar eyes of my Mother. Only they weren't exactly twilight blue anymore, but emerald. Mom's long snowy white hair still cascaded down behind her like a silvery waterfall, but now it was streaked with black highlights, the same hue Mother had told me about when she was human.

Smiling gently, she came down to sit down on her knees to my level as she humbly rapped her loving arms around me. Looking up, she saw my sister and brother just standing there with streaming tears in their eyes. Reaching out a hand to them, she said their true names as they all but ran to her, "Zack. Lindsey."

"Mom, what's happened?" I heard my sister sniffle as she just gripped our Mother in tears.

My brother was silent as he whispered, "The last time we saw you like this …"

"I know," Mom had said with a tiny smile. "It's gotten this way due to children's continuing to doubt in disabelief."

"Can fear even do this?" Aurora asked, looking over at her own parents.

Following her head, I saw Aunt Narain smile over at us weakly as she sat a hand across Uncle Bunny's paw.

"I'm not sure, but doubt seems to be a greater force right now. It's hit the Guardians harder than I've ever imagined."

"Who is it out there, Mom? We heard a voice talking there in the observatory," I said, curious.

"Well, I've only met her a few times before, but I think it's …" Mom started to say before it was said for her.

"Mother Nature," My brother said simply, turning to the door.

Following him, my sister and I walked into the observatory to see a tall woman I have only heard of before and two new faces I had never seen either. Their names were Taylor Spring and Saige Fall, the spirits of Spring and Fall.

"Ok, just who are you three supposed to be now?" we heard Snow say, eyeing them.

Sighing, Blaze temporarily stepped closer to his cousin as he said, "Well, dear cousin, that is Mother Nature."

The woman that stood before us all smiled as she caught sight of us. Dressed in a green and teal grassy tiered tethered dress, she turned her curled auburn head towards Blaze's voice when she heard him.

"And they are the last two seasonals of the yearly seasons, Taylor and Saige," he said with a smile.

"You know them because you're the summer spirit," I said with a small giggle.

Laughing along with me, Blaze's own face glowed with pride while Snow groaned where she stood.

"Don't make his head any bigger than what it is, Dust," Snow said, giving me an irritated grin.

Turning to Mother Nature, Blaze only said, "What are you doing here, Mother?"

"Blaze, here you are! I was so worried when we couldn't track you down," she exclaimed with a wide and cheery smile.

"Why be that concerned? It's still winter, not yet time for me to bring about the summer season yet."

"That's one reason why I'm here, I'm afraid," she said, turning to see all of us. "I had noticed that Jack wasn't causing his 'beginning of winter' blizzard as he should have already done. Receiving some grave news, I made my way here to the Pole, where I had found the Guardians, my dear Jack, and my sweet little Casey Aqua and Narain Hart here, too, laying here weak as rain. That was when Manny told me everything about what's happened thus far and that he has chosen all of you, including Taylor and Saige, as new guardians."

Blaze turned to meet the eyes of the two girls that stood next to him in shock as Aurora said, "Ah, sorry to be rude, but might I ask what's wrong with that?"

"There's nothing wrong with that. Well, it's just I'm not comfortable with seeing my little seasonals, Narain, Casey, you and little Snow fighting against the Mistress of Deception," Mother Nature said, turning to us as well.

Stepping forward, my brother addressed her as he said, "Is it just them, Mother Nature, or all of us as well?"

"Any one of you," she said truthfully, turning to me and siblings as we stood near Aurora and Snow. "You all just seem so young to be taking on a complication such as this."

"No offense," Snow said, gripping her staff, "but, we're more than capable of handling ourselves out there. Just look at who we are, and you'll know that we are."

Speaking up, I said, "I have to agree with Snow, we can handle ourselves alright out there, and I think your 'seasonals' should be allowed to choose whether or not they want to help us fight this fight. It's only right."

"Yeah," Snow said, overstepping my words, "Oh, and by the way … I'm not LITTLE! I'm just small for my age."

Cloud and I looked at each other as everyone chuckled at Snow's outburst, but I could immediately tell that Mother Nature didn't find it pleasant at all.

"Well, I definitely know where and how you got your temper, young lady," Mother Nature said, raising a hand to touch her brow. Sighing, she said, "However, I suppose all of you are right. You all are very powerful and capable children. And, considering what went on with Pitch's return, I suppose that there's nothing I can do to stand in your way."

Walking up to us, or Blaze anyway, I heard one of the girls say, "So, this is where you've been hiding." Taylor, the girl who had just spoken, was dressed all in white, except for the pink stripes on her shorts and her blonde pink highlighted hair styled back into two pretty ponytails.

Saige, the other girl, who was wearing a red dress and brown boots with brown red highlighted hair styled back into a bun, she stepped forward as she said, "Mother was getting worried."

"She didn't need to, I just was looking for my aunt," Blaze said with a grin.

As Blaze was talking to the girls, my gaze shifted past them as I saw another girl step shyly into the room.

Looking over to where my friends and I stood, she smiled as she caught my brother's eye. Nodding her head at him, she continued on past us as I watched my brother follow her with his brown eyes, his hair barely flaming.

"Mother," she greeted Mother Nature with a hug. "May I also help with the quest?"

"Honey, I don't know … you know how your father feels about this …" Mother Nature started to say before all eyes turned to Snow.

"He abandoned my mother," came Snow's outburst as she crossed her arms in anger. "Manny abandoned both she and my father."

Taylor and Saige but opened their mouths to protest, but Blaze held out a hand as he gazed up at his cousin with a frown.

"How dare you," Luna said, striding over to where Snow and I stood. "How dare you say those things about my father! He did no such thing."

"Just who are you supposed to be?" Snow retorted, challenging her.

"For your information, I am Luna Millennia Dusk, Manny's daughter," Luna said boldly.

"Millennia, that is quite enough," Mother Nature said, sitting a hand on her daughter's shoulder.

"Yes, Mother," she said, turning back to us. "I apologize at my outburst, but I want to help ward off Angel Moon, too."

Snow narrowed her eyes at her, but Aurora stepped up as she asked, "Why is it we never heard your wish to join us until now, just curious?"

"I wasn't permitted to," Luna said, folding her arms behind her back. Her midnight blue black boots rubbed the ground sadly as she said, "Father wouldn't let me."

"But, I want to help," she said with determination, looking up at her Mother.

"I'm sure you do, dear, but we have to respect your father's decision if it's what he wants for now …"

"Oh, so sweet, I never thought I'd see you again, Mother. It's been so long, and what is this, Manny has chosen a bunch of kids to stop me? Oh, how unpredictable," a mysterious voice said as the observatory windowpane just ripped open from an unknown wind.

* * *

**Back at the Pole where we meet two new spirits and Mother Nature herself. What can the daughter of the Man in the Man help to bring to the little group? Well, find out very soon, for next up, we see the first appearance of Angel Moon herself.**

**Please enjoy this new chapter. :)**


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 12 - Looks Aren't that Deceiving

* * *

"What? A silent party, and I wasn't invited? Oh, what shame," the mysterious voice said as a head peeked from the skylight. Resting a hand on her cheek against the skylight, we all watched as a resided smile peeked through as her eyes scanned us all.

"You know as much as I that this isn't a party, Angel," Mother Nature said with a serious frown.

Tilting my head back, I met the eyes of my siblings in worry. "_Angel Moon,_" we whispered. Aurora's paw strayed to her side as Snow and Blaze each gripped and readied their staffs.

Laughing scornfully, Angel replied, "OH, Terra, how you jest. You've always made me laugh."

"Angel, stop this, this is so unlike you," Mother Nature said, letting go of her daughter's hand as she stood in front of us all.

"Hah, you haven't known me for the past 900 years," Angel said, flashing out of phase to appear right in front of her. "I'm surprised you'd even remember me, after what you and the rest of the Guardians did to me." With those last words, she unfurled her dark streaked wings as she flew back up to hover about the globe.

"What we did to you?" Mother Nature muttered, gazing up to follow Angel's trail around the Globe.

Luna had had enough, however. With a speed that even surprised Snow and Solar, Luna pushed past her mother, Taylor, and Saige to call up to her, "What exactly did my Mother and the Guardians ever do to you? You're the one attacking them."

With a chortle, Angel fluttered a little lower to say, "All in good time, little moonbeam."

Hotter than ever with fury, Snow joined in saying, "How's that? Who exactly do you think you are?"

"Why, I'm flattered you would even ask, little snowflake, when you already know too well who I am," Angel said, turning her dark eyes down to face Snow's with a sneer.

"Leave her alone!" Blaze said, stepping in front of his cousin as he fired his staff out at her. Pulled back immediately by Aurora, Snow closed her eyes, no doubt feeling the immenseness of the heat he was donning.

Met with the sudden brightness and warmth, Angel covered her eyes as she pulled back in surprise. "My, such spirit in ones so young," she said, turning back to face Mother Nature.

"You don't know the half of it," Mother Nature said, turning to face her once again.

Rubbing her forehead, which was easily wet with sweat, Snow hollered at Blaze as she said, "I didn't need your protection, Hot Stick. I could've easily could have done that myself!"

"Snow, what if you had gotten hurt? I wasn't trying to take your shot, I just trying to protect …"

"I don't need you're protection, alright?!" Snow said, getting to her feet, but she didn't get far as Aurora hauled her to feet with a firm hand.

Letting go, Aurora handed her staff as she said, "Snow, Blaze, that's enough."

"No, it isn't," Snow said, diving down past Aurora's gaze as she took an icy shot at Angel herself.

Turning her head on her shoulder with a clever grin, Angel just hovered there as the ice beam phased through her like she wasn't even there.

"What?!" came Snow's angry shriek as she clenched her staff in both hands.

Cloud and I rushed to her side as we all hear laughing coming back up towards the skylight. Looking up, we saw Angel clutching the edge of it as she folded in her dark wings. "My, don't you kids know that looks can be deceiving?"

"What going on in here?!" a voice said as we all turned to see North limp into the room, aided by Tooth whose pink shimmery wings just limped down her back like they were useless. Looking slowly up, a tear crossed one of his baby blue eyes, he whispered, "Angel?"

"Hello, North," Angel said rather sweetly, but it was quickly covered up with a smirk. "Oh, we've had a few new recruits over the years, haven't we?" Lifting her eyes, she watched as our parents slowly filed out the door.

I almost ran to my parents as I saw them amble out through the door. Dad never looked more serious as I saw a grim line form across his lips in contempt and sadness. Mom gazed up at the now renowned Angel Moon as sadness and quiet resolve filled her eyes.

Aurora wandered over to us as she watched her parents. Following her direct gaze, I saw the quiet anger in Uncle Bunny's eyes as one of his paws rested at the hint of his boomerang pack while he had the other wrapped around Aunt Narain's shoulders to hold her up. However, Aunt Narain's eyes were dead set, too, on the traitor above them all.

"Well, this changes things. Now, not only have I faced abandonment, but I've been replaced, too," she said, as anger sparked in her eyes.

Turning my head, I saw that Snow was looking straight up at her with strange look of coincidence.

"No, it wasn't like that," North said, willing her to hear the truth.

"You lied to me!" she screeched, more vicious than ever. Straddling out the skylight, she called, "I think I may have overstepped my welcome."

"You're right about that, because you aren't even welcomed here in the first place," Bunny said, seething with fury and unbridled sadness.

"You think I don't know that. I would watch that anger, Bunnymund, it is so not becoming on you," she said turning back to us. "Something tells me I'll be seeing you all, again. Ta-ta." And with that, she vanished with a quick and swift gesture with her wing.

"Wait, who's that?" I called out, running towards the Globe as I pointed up towards where she just disappeared.

"Who dear?" Mom said as she and Dad gathered around me.

"There was someone else with her, I saw them," I kept insisting as my brother just stared at me.

"Saw who, Dusty? I didn't see anyone else," he said, watching as Aurora and Snow raised their eyebrows in confusion.

"It was him … the Traveler in the Dark … He's with her," I said desperately. "I saw him, he was right there, standing behind her on the skylight."

Snow groaned. "Dust, not this, again," she said, shaking her head.

"Wait a minute," Cloud said, bending down to take my hands in hers. "I saw him, too. Only for a moment, but he was there, sure enough. Dusty's right, there is someone else with Angel."

"I do believe you're right, but hardly anyone knows about him," Luna said, joining me on my other side.

"Do you know who he is?" I asked her.

"Barely, but …"

"Just who do you think you are?" Snow screamed, striding over to where we sat before anyone could stop her.

Pointing her staff directly in front of her, she said, "You said it yourself, you're not supposed to be here."

"I chose to be here, because I felt like I was needed," Luna said patiently.

Snow didn't say anything else as Luna continued, "As the spirit of time, I am aware of everything that happens here, but not even I know how these events will play out, but if we 'all,' and I'm talking about you and your cousin, too, don't work together as a team, we will not succeed."

"How can I trust you?" Snow said, still as a statue.

"Snow, you were led to believe that my Father 'abandoned' your parents, left them questioning their identities, but that's not what happened, and only you can be the one to decide that. I only offer you the truth in return, but it was essential for them and you'll figure out why. Whether you choose to trust me or not is your decision."

Lowering her staff, Snow just crossed her arms and remained silent.

"Milly, don't let Snow get to you," Taylor said, coming over to their friend.

"Yeah, let's focus on what we are going to do next," Saige said, joining Taylor.

"Milly?" Snow asked, puzzled.

"Yeah, that's what we call her besides Luna. To you, she may be that, but she's Milly to us," Saige said with a smile.

"Well, I happen to like the name Luna," my brother said with a blush.

Smiling a little herself, Luna paused a hand to her cheek before she tilted her head up to meet Taylor's eyes. "Don't worry about me, Tay, I'm fine."

"Well, don't feel bad Mills, we _all _have to be patient with Snow," he whispered, smiling at his cousin.

Narrowing her eyes at him, Snow turned to me as she said, "I need some air."

"I'll go with you," I said, giving her a grin.

"Mind if we come along, Snow?" Mom asked, standing next to my sister and Auntie Casey, whose sad eyes never left Snow's.

"Sure," Snow said with a shrug as we all took the elevator down.

Along the way, Casey leaned against Mom's arm for support as we walked past the yetis and out into the winter air. Our parents were hardly doing any better, but they seemed a little stronger at least. Mom's hair still had long ebony black streaks fading into her now soft silver hair, and Auntie Casey wasn't too far off with her own dark brown streaks running through her own black hair.

The winter wind was blowing a bit, but the warm sun helped a bit in providing a subtle breeze warm enough for Auntie Casey. In other words, it was ok for her to be out for a few minutes, which wasn't for long.

However, taking the time she knew she had before she had to go back inside where it was warm, Auntie Casey took Snow aside as they sat in the warm light of one of the yetis' light posts, out of earshot.

"What's going on?" we heard Luna say as she joined us outside. However, I was pleasantly surprised to see that my brother had followed her out. With his fiery hair blowing madly in the breeze, he didn't even flinch as his firelight was extinguished in a blink. His hair settled into its natural dark brown shade as he stood calmly next to Luna.

"Nothing much, we just stepped out for a breath of fresh air," I said.

Tilting her head, Luna said, "Snow wanted to get away, huh?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Don't worry about it, she's right, I'm not meant to be here," Luna said softly.

"What do you mean?" my brother asked, concern written across his eyes.

Looking up where Manny was waiting in the sky, she said, "It's my Dad, he wants me home."

"Why? I thought that you said you wanted to help us."

"I do, but Dad says otherwise. I want to be here, though," she said with a smile.

"So wait, are you going?" Snow asked, surprisingly coming up when she heard.

"For now," Luna said, gazing up at Manny. "Dad wants me home."

"Isn't it your choice, though, whether you want to stay or not," Snow said, which surprised me.

"Apparently, Dad doesn't see it that way. He says he does it to protect me, but what he doesn't know is that I want to become a Guardian, like all the rest of you," she said, walking into the distance as she turned back to face us for a final second. "But, don't worry, I'll be back, you can count on it. I'll find a way, whether he says I can't or not."

And, with that, she disappeared into one of the stretches of Manny's moonbeams as Snow held her staff aloft in the snow.

Seeing Casey shiver, Mom immediately pulled off her shawl from her shoulder as she wrapped it around Casey as she said, "Come on, let's get you out of the cold before you freeze."

Walking back towards the door, Cloud and I stopped as Snow yelled out.

"Hey guys, over here. Look what I found," she said, holding up a freshly cut palm sized of something I couldn't identify.

"You don't think it came from where Angel appeared from, do you?" my sister asked, seeing Snow thinking.

"I've got a good hunch. Come on, let's go show the others," she said with us running in after her in a hurry.

* * *

**Well, here you have it, Chapter 12. Hopefully, the next chapters will come just as smoothly. :)**

**New characters present in this one, but Luna I mentioned a little bit in last chapter. She is the daughter of Manny [Man in the Man] and our Mother Nature, Themis Terra. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I promise she will be back. Also, be on the lookout for a new character that I've hinted at, but not yet revealed. :) **

**Until next time, please enjoy.**


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 13 - Luna Serene

* * *

"Hey Dust?"

"Yeah?"

"You mind if I take over for a bit?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"Oh, I know what this is about … _Hahahaa_ …"

"Oh yeah, really funny sis, it'll be your turn soon, too, you know."

"Well then, you better not leave them waiting."

* * *

Well, here goes. It started right after Snow lowered her staff away from Luna. "Whether you choose to trust me or not is your decision," she said while we all watched as Snow lowered her staff without a word.

As Luna graciously stood to her feet, I calmly watched as she turned her violet gemmed eyes over to me as I stood there, dazed. Absently wiping a hand through my flaming hair, I turned away to see Sandy with a clever look in his eye and Bunnymund smirking at me behind his paw.

Turning to touch my board fondly, I felt my ear perk up as I heard Bunny say, "Is it just me, or does our Hot Beak look a little doe-eyed?"

Sandy just simply looked back at me with a fond smile as I turned back to our new friends.

Luna was facing away me now as Taylor and Saige came up to her.

"Milly, don't let Snow get to you," Taylor said gently.

What surprised me was the fact that they called her 'Milly.' And frankly, I wasn't the only one.

"Milly?" Snow said, taking my thoughts along with her words.

"Yeah, that's what we call her. To you, she may be Luna, but she's Milly to us," Saige said quite fondly.

Tilting my eyes up to meet hers, I found myself saying, "Well, I happen to like the name Luna."

I blushed as I felt my cheeks heat up, and it wasn't because of my fire.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that Luna sort of did the same thing as me as she sat a hand on her blushing cheek, but the shy smile told me something different.

Lifting her eyes though to meet Taylor's, she said, "Oh, don't worry about me, Tay, I'm fine."

"Well, don't feel bad on it, Mills, we _all _have to be patient with Snow," I heard Blaze say, turning to see Snow sticking out her tongue at him.

Turning away, she released a huff as she said, "I need some air."

Watching as Dusty, my sister, our Mom and Casey walked out with her, I followed Luna's observant eyes as she followed them out the door.

"I hope that Snow is alright," I heard her say genially, looking up as none other than Jack Frost walked up to fondly meet Mother Nature's eye.

"It hasn't been easy for Snow trusting Manny after all that we have told her about our pasts. I know her, she's just as stubborn as her mother, why even a little more so then what I've with Casey over the years."

"Well, Frosty, she did hold that grudge on you when you didn't come see her as you had promised you would have," Blaze said, challenging him with a protective edge to his voice. "Just because she's my aunt and I didn't get to see her, it doesn't mean that I wasn't aware of what was going on."

"Hey, we're over that, alright? I wouldn't dare abandon her, not even now, that's how much I love her, alright?" Jack said, challenging him yet again. In fact, with those two nose to nose, you could almost see the steam and vapor vibrating around them.

"Whoa, easy Frostbite," Bunny said, pulling Jack back by his hood.

"Look, I'm not saying I don't see that, ok? All I'm saying is that I want to see my aunt being happy. You don't know how long I've seen her looking out to see you on those spent winters where you didn't come, but she had friends that helped her to cope your absence. And then, when all of this happened with Pitch, you can't say that she wasn't angry with you, but at the same time she was ecstatic, I could picture it when she first saw me yesterday. I saw how close you two were, and I couldn't have been more honored to see that smile on her face that I had wished to see all those years. She lost so much with her memories and family, but she still had everything … and now, she has you," I heard Blaze said with utmost pride as Taylor and Saige both looked up at Jack with pleasant smiles on their faces.

Luna smiled, too, but her never wandering eyes were still looking towards the door.

"Luna?" I asked her, placing my board against the wall. "What's wrong?"

Turning to me, she asked, "Can we go check on Snow? I just want to make sure she's ok before I have to … "

"Have to what?"

"Nothing, it's nothing," she said, shaking her long auburn curls. "Can we go and see how she is?"

"Sure," I said, following her out the door.

Tugging absently on one of her long twilight purple sleeves, she pinned a lock of her hair out of her eye as she said softly, "I didn't want to say anything before, but I can't stay to help you all."

"Why not?" I found myself saying, clearly bewildered.

"I'm not allowed to. Dad picks new guardians when the time is truly right, but for some reason, he never picks me, his own daughter."

"And, why do you think that?" I asked her as we walked.

"Because I've even asked him, and he won't tell me why. All he says is that he wants to protect me," she said, turning her violet eyes back to me.

"Just like how you want to protect your father from Snow's remarks," I said with a chuckle.

Offering me a small grin in response, she sighed as she said, "It's more than that. I'm ready to become a Guardian, but he still won't honor my most valued desire because of who I am."

I found myself confused at this statement, and it must have showed because then she said, "I'm the Spirit of Time and the Princess of the Moon, but I don't see myself as just a princess. My job is important enough, but I want to do my part when it comes to keeping the world safe."

"Sure, anyone can see that, I mean I'm not a Guardian yet either, but I still choose to do my part."

"Exactly, but you are already a Guardian, you just don't realize it. I know you, Solar Flare, you are more than ready," she said, stopping me in my tracks.

"How do you even know me?" I asked, finding myself looking into her gemmed eyes. "I don't even know you."

"Because I do," she said even more softly. "All those nights that you spent talking to my father, I heard you. I heard your heart, and because of that, I know you're ready."

"Ready? I haven't even found my center," I said, turning to face ahead.

"Solar, you may not get it," she said, placing a hand on my shoulder, "but it's closer than you think."

"How? I've never found it before, as I've said."

"But you will, when the time is right," she said dutifully.

I couldn't help but smile at her words of confidence, but soon I came to find that they were not merely that but words of utmost reason. And, little did I know that her time was short to stay.

As we made it outside, I did something that I never allowed myself to do ever, and that was release my firelight. As the cold arctic winds thrust itself at me, I just serenely let my firelight go out as it did whenever I got wet. Instead of being frustrated, I just smiled as my dark brown hair came glistening down to touch my brow. Pulling it back, I ran to catch up with Luna as she stopped to talk with my Mom and sister.

"Is Snow, alright? She wanted to get away, didn't she?" I heard Luna ask as I caught the watchful eyes of my sister. Even she was smiling at me with a knowing grin.

"Yeah, I think so, at least that's what it seemed like," our little sister, Dusty, said softly.

"It's ok, don't worry about it, Snow's right. I'm not meant to be here," she said, hearing me gasp. Turning to me, she said, "My Dad wants me home."

As she said that, I found I wasn't the only one surprised, even though she had just told me before. But, I had to say that I honestly felt my heart skip a beat just at the thought of her leaving so soon. I mean, I barely even knew her, but it felt like I always knew her.

So, as she disappeared into a stretch of Manny's moon rays, it honestly took I had not to fall to my knees. Finding myself not able to speak, I quickly and speedily made my way back inside North's workshop to find a quiet corner to myself.

* * *

It was true, I liked Luna. And really, that's all I can really say on the manner, but I can also say that I really didn't find it strange either when she said that she knew me. You know, in a lot of truth, it made sense.

Looking up into the night sky, I watched as Manny grinned back at me into the night as a single moonbeam came in and touched my face, illuminating my tears.

It was true that I spent many nights talking to Manny back when I first became a spirit of fire, but he had given me something else as well, a friend. When you sit alone not really knowing who you are, you can't help but wonder if there's anyone out there that's right for you – someone who would listen to your problems and help you feel like you weren't really alone.

I have to say that I felt that way with Manny, but I had felt that there was someone else listening and watching, too. And, now I knew …

"_I know you're somewhere out there, Somewhere far away,  
I want you back … I want you back …  
My neighbors think I'm crazy, But they don't understand  
You're all I had … You're all I had …_

"_At night when the stars light up my room,  
I sit by myself … talking to the moon.  
Trying to get to you …  
In hopes you're on the other side talking to me too.  
Or am I am a fool who sits alone talking to the Moon?_

"_Ohoooo …_

Honestly, I felt the stars and the breeze start to flutter my hair as I faced the Moon, with a loving tear raining my cheek.

_I'm feeling like I'm famous … The talk of the town,  
They say I've gone mad … Yeah, I've gone mad  
But they don't know what I know  
Cause when the sun goes down  
Someone's talking back … Yeah, they're talking back  
Ohhh_

"_At night when the stars light up my room  
I sit by myself talking to the moon.  
Trying to get to you ...  
In hopes you're on the other side talking to me too.  
Or am I a fool who sits alone talking to the Moon?"_

"Do you ever hear me calling?" I asked, gazing up at Manny. I didn't hear the door open as a quiet pair of heels walked into the room behind me.

"I'm sure she does, Solar," a gentle voice said behind me as I turned to meet the wise aqua green eyes of Mother Nature. "She is quite fond of you, she's told me."

"She has?"

_Hmm-hmm_, she nodded. "She also told me to tell you that she doesn't think you are a fool, no one does, my little Flare."

"When will she be back, do you know?"

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" she said with a smile as Luna came into the room, smiling at me.

I just laughed with joy until Blaze, Jack, Casey, Sandy, and Mom came running into the room.

"Solar, have you seen Dusty? We can't find her anywhere," Mom said distressed.

"And, Snow's missing, too," Jack said, holding Casey.

"No, I haven't seen her…" I started to say until we all heard a quiet gasp from my sister.

"Linds?" I said, coming over to her as she just stared back at me with troubled eyes.

"I saw them, down by the elevator. Dusty was with Snow … Snow said they would be right up, but I didn't see them come up. I went back downstairs and they were missing, but I think I know where they went," she said, her gaze staring out the window beyond the Pole.

"Oh no," Casey and Mom both said as Sandy's eyes trenched up with worry and determination as he touched my Mother's shoulder.

Making an image appear above his head, he told her that he would go and look for them, but Mom insisted on going with him as did Casey when she saw Jack's gaze follow my sister's gaze.

"We have to find them, and we will," I said, grabbing my board as I was joined by Luna as we raced out the door.

* * *

**I know this reflects my latter chapter, but I wanted to do something special with Solar to represent how Luna knew Solar over the years. It's true he had never met her, but Luna is such a special character that I wanted to make this chapter special. So, also, featuring one of my favorite songs, please enjoy some of the lyrics from "Talking to the Moon" by Bruno Mars. :)**


End file.
